NRL threatens to suspend player agents Gavin Orr and Nash Dawson over physical altercation at schoolboys competition
NRL officials confirmed on Thursday that they planned on banning Nash Dawson for nine months and Gavin Orr six months over the incident.
The duo will also be fined $15,000 and $10,000 respectively, with the pair given until late next week to respond to the breach notices.
Combined, Dawson and Orr represent some of the NRL's best talent.
Dawson looks after the affairs of Ezra Mam, Reece Walsh, Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow and Robert Toia, among others.
Orr is the owner and director of sport at Pacific Sport Management, whose talent list includes Dylan Brown, Selwyn Cobbo, Jahrome Hughes and Valentine Holmes.
"The notices allege that both agents have breached the NRL Accredited Agent Scheme Rules and the Accredited Agents' Code of Conduct following a physical altercation between the agents at the Australian Secondary Schools Rugby League Championships in 2024," the NRL said in a statement.
"It is also alleged the agents failed to co-operate with the NRL integrity unit.
"Under the Accredited Agents' Code of Conduct, Accredited Agents are required to operate with high personal and professional standards."
The altercation is believed to have happened outside of a pub, while the pair were in Port Macquarie last year.
Realistically, the impact on either of the pair's clients is likely to be minimal, given Dawson and Orr's colleagues from the same companies can handle matters.
It comes after show-cause notices handed to fellow player agents Mario Tartak and Matt Desira proposed sanctions of fines and bans last month.
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ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Do class actions really deliver justice?
Sam Hawley: On average, there's a class action launched in Australia every week. But do they really help bring justice to groups of Australians exposed to wrongdoing? Today, Anne Connolly on her Four Corners investigation into the class action traps leaving victims short-changed and lawyers richer. I'm Sam Hawley on Gadigal land in Sydney. This is ABC News Daily. Sam Hawley: Anne, in Australia, class actions have become pretty common, haven't they? It's a really important way to address injustices in this country. Anne Connolly: Well, yes, that's what class actions are designed to do. And I mean, when there were some really major catastrophes, such as the Victorian bushfires, the Queensland floods, class actions were taken to get some money back for those people. News report: Property owners around Horsham in Victoria have banded together to bring the first class action arising from the Black Saturday bushfires. Anne Connolly: Same with the pelvic mesh issue against Johnson & Johnson. News report: The federal court found Johnson & Johnson had been negligent and driven by commercial interest and ordered them to pay compensation. Anne Connolly: There's many, and they're very varied. Sam Hawley: Yeah, and you found during your Four Corners investigation, this is a billion dollar industry, but it's not always in favour of the individual victims. So to explain this further, why don't we look at a recent case, Anne, a legal fight between more than 8,000 Australian taxi drivers and Uber. Anne Connolly: Well, I mean, I think most people remember when Uber entered the market, obviously the taxi industry was absolutely decimated. They just couldn't compete any longer. One of the taxi owners I spoke to is a man called Stephen Lacaze. He said he had a licence in Queensland, which was at the time valued at about half a million dollars. It went to being virtually worthless once Uber came along. Stephen Lacaze, taxi owner: Oh, it was devastating. People virtually went into shock. Anne Connolly: So when Maurice Blackburn, which is one of the biggest class action firms in Australia, came along and proposed a class action, he was very keen to sign up. Stephen Lacaze, taxi owner: We were friendless. And here comes Maurice Blackburn with their Bradman-like batting averages, and their 'we fight for fair' banner, and we're there with bells on. Sam Hawley: OK, so Stephen was keen to fight this. Maurice Blackburn lawyers take it on, and they get a third party, a litigation funder, to pay the costs. Just explain how that works. Anne Connolly: Yeah, so what happens is Maurice Blackburn doesn't want to go this alone. So what they do is they engage somebody called a litigation funder. And litigation funders, they pay the lawyers' fees, they support them, and if they lose, they pay all of the costs, so there is some risk. But in return for taking that risk, they want a percentage of any payout that they win. So in this case, with Maurice Blackburn, they had a partnership with an offshore firm called Harbour Litigation Funding, which is actually registered in the Cayman Islands. It's a tax haven, and there's quite a few litigation funders in tax havens. Under this deal, they said, we want 30% of the proceeds. And Stephen signed up for that, as did most of the taxi drivers. Stephen said he did that because he thought they were going to get a payout worth billions because that's how much they'd lost. Sam Hawley: So in this case, Maurice Blackburn, the law firm, ends up settling this class action. So just tell me what happens then. Are the taxi drivers elated about this? Anne Connolly: Well, the night before the trial was due to start in March last year, Maurice Blackburn brokered a deal with Uber. That would be that Uber would pay $272 million in compensation. Now, once Harbour took its commission, that came out at $81.5 million. Maurice Blackburn took its legal costs, which came to $39 million. It means that the drivers were left with just over half the payout. Now, we don't know what individual taxi drivers will get. Stephen Lacaze believes he'll get about $20,000 once all of these fees and commissions come out of his payment, which he says is nowhere near what he lost. Sam Hawley: What did Maurice Blackburn have to say about that? Anne Connolly: They said the federal court had approved the settlement as fair and reasonable, and Harbour, the funder, said that the case was long-running and there were significant risks. Sam Hawley: Hmm, OK. So, Anne, that's the case of the taxi drivers against Uber, and we're going to talk about another really concerning case in a moment. But before we do, let's just look at the system more deeply. The worry here is that the whole class action system is set up to make profits for the law firms and the funders, but not deliver the justice to the victims, right? Anne Connolly: Well, there's some people who are concerned about that. I mean, the lawyers and the funders will say, without us, people would get nothing. The problem is that what's happening now is most people think a class action begins with a group of victims, but that's not really the case anymore. Now everything has changed because litigation funders have now entered the Australian market. So what happens is, it's the law firms and the litigation funders getting together and seeing, what are these issues that we could launch a class action on so that they can make money and then they can sign up the group members? So the concern is, are they really seeking justice for people or are they actually just finding a business opportunity so that they can make as much profit as they possibly can? Sam Hawley: Anne, let's now look at another case where the victims are left with, in comparison, petty change. Just tell me about Minnie McDonald. Anne Connolly: So Minnie McDonald is a woman in her 90s. She lives in Alice Springs and she was approached by Shine lawyers to become what's called the lead plaintiff in a class action in the Northern Territory for stolen wages of Indigenous workers who worked on cattle stations and missions for little or no money. Minnie McDonald, lead plaintiff: No shoes, get up in the morning, go to work. Come back afternoon, cold. Anne Connolly: So this case relates to the treatment of people like Minnie who, along with a lot of other... ..thousands of other Aboriginal men, women and children worked for little or no pay between the 1930s and the 1970s. Look, I just think, you know, one of the things I want to say about this is if ever there was a class action needed, perhaps it was in this particular case. I mean, there's questions about why the governments didn't just actually pay people what they deserved instead of being forced to court and forced to pay out compensation. But in any case, what Shine says and what the litigation funder says is we were doing our very best to get right a particular historical injustice. Sam Hawley: So the law firm Shine takes on this class action along with the litigation funder, Litigation Lending Services, and Minnie becomes the lead plaintiff. But the thing is, Anne, we know with legal cases, there's a lot of paperwork and Minnie had to sign a lot of that and she can't read or write. Anne Connolly: That's right, she can't read or write. So Minnie had her granddaughter Elizabeth to help her. However, Elizabeth does say, you know, it was complicated. It was difficult to understand at times. So Minnie did sign one document which said that Shine's costs had increased by $10 million and she signed off on that. I asked her about it and I asked her granddaughter if they remembered it. They didn't. I asked Shine, did they check that Minnie had the capacity to understand the complex legal and financial issues around class actions? They said being unable to read or write is no indication of intelligence and that they had an Indigenous barrister who helped to cross these cultural barriers and explain the process to them. Sam Hawley: So tell me what ended up happening with the case. Anne Connolly: So there were two class actions in WA and the NT and they both settled. So they didn't go to court. In Western Australia, there was a settlement for $180 million. In the Northern Territory, it was $200 million. Which sounds, you know, really positive. But what has to come out of that are the legal costs and the commission for the litigation funder. So they're not going to end up with that much. They'll end up with at least $10,000 and some will end up with more than that. Minnie McDonald, lead plaintiff: So somebody might... get a car and just take me for a picnic somewhere, you know, have a feed. But... I didn't get enough. Anne Connolly: You didn't get enough to buy a car? Minnie McDonald, lead plaintiff: Yeah, yeah. Nothing. Not enough. Anne Connolly: On the other hand, what's happened is Shine Lawyers is going to get about $30 million for its work. And the funder, Litigation Lending Services, they will take a commission of about $57 million. Sam Hawley: And you've had a really good look, haven't you, also, at the amount the law firm Shine was actually charging. Anne Connolly: Well, that's very interesting because Shine was roundly criticised in both WA and Northern Territory courts by the judges there. In one instance, Shine was charging for law clerks, charging them out at $375 an hour, even though many of them were unqualified uni students. They hired at least a dozen barristers that cost almost $3.5 million. One of those barristers charges almost $5,000 an hour. So, you know, the legal costs are the things that's really interesting. Sam Hawley: All right. So, Anne, the law firms and the funds are making a lot of money from these class actions in many cases. They do argue, as you mentioned, that they're actually giving people a chance to have these cases heard. What has Shine told you? Anne Connolly: Well, Shine said we were the only ones who were willing to take this on. We have given Aboriginal workers a chance to tell their stories. They've received compensation and they're being acknowledged for the historical injustices that they've suffered. And they said that these cases require experienced and well-resourced lawyers. And Litigation Lending Services, they said that they're proud of their involvement and that their commission was lower than the standard market rates because they wanted to reflect the social justice nature of these claims. Sam Hawley: And you spoke to the head of the Association of Litigation Funders. So this is a group that represents the firms that financially back these class actions, the funds. Its head is John Walker. So what's he had to say? Anne Connolly: Well, he said, look, you know, this is a market. This is a financial market that they operate in. They're trying to get some justice for people, but at the same time they're trying to make a profit and they don't shy away from that. John Walker, Association of Litigation Funders : We underwrite the project. We'll pay everybody if we lose, but in return, if we win, then we get a share of the recovery. We don't see it as gambling. We see it as investing. It's a market, and I don't step away from that. Anne Connolly: He essentially says, look, what we're doing is we're trying to correct the bad behaviour. Even if these class members are not getting enormous sums, it's sending a message to the big end of town that you can't operate in this way any longer. John Walker, Association of Litigation Funders : I'm absolutely proud of what's happened with class actions in Australia. They're absolutely essential to create accountability in respect of the big companies and governments. Sam Hawley: But, Anne, it does sound like a system that's not really working as it should. That is for the everyday people who need it. Anne Connolly: Well, I think what happens is a lot of people look at a class action sum and they believe that the sum that's been publicised is what people are getting. They don't realise that up to half of it can disappear in fees and commissions. The other point being the only class actions that actually get funded and get run are those that turn a profit. So when you're talking about others that might be very worthy, they won't get up if the bottom line doesn't look good. I think the problem arises when you're talking about people who have really suffered, such as these Aboriginal workers in the stolen wages cases who thought that they were going to get some proper compensation and what they're getting is simply a fraction of what they really deserve. And when they do see litigation funders and lawyers walking away with tens of millions of dollars, it makes it difficult for them to understand and sometimes it can feel like they've been exploited all over again. Sam Hawley: Anne Connolly is an investigative reporter with the ABC. You can see her Four Corners report on ABC TV tonight at 8.30pm or you can catch it on iView. This episode was produced by Sydney Pead. Audio production by Sam Dunn. Our supervising producer is David Coady. I'm Sam Hawley. Thanks for listening.
Daily Telegraph
3 hours ago
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Stuard Broad hits back at David Warner as Ashes war of words erupts, cricket 2025 news
Don't miss out on the headlines from Cricket. Followed categories will be added to My News. There's nearly four months until the first Ashes Test in Perth, but the war of words is already well underway. Ex-England bowler Stuart Broad has hit back at comments from former Australian rival David Warner, who took a gentle dig at superstar batter Joe Root ahead of the marquee series. Speaking to BBC Sport, Warner suggested that Root, the second-leading run-scorer in Test history, was susceptible to LBW dismissals, warning that Australian quick Josh Hazlewood will be targeting his front pad during this summer's Ashes campaign. Root averages 51.09 in Tests, but that figure slips to 31.40 when facing Hazlewood. Watch England vs India Test Series LIVE & EXCLUSIVE on Fox Cricket, available on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1 > 'The big anchor there is Rooty, who is yet to score a hundred in Australia,' Warner said. 'Hazlewood tends to have his number quite a lot. He will have to take the surfboard off his front leg.' Most times dismissing Joe Root in Tests 11 – Pat Cummins (AUS) 11 – Jasprit Bumrah (IND) 10 – Josh Hazlewood (AUS) 9 – Ravindra Jadeja (IND) England's Joe Root. Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP Root has cracked 15 Test hundreds since the start of 2022, averaging 64.64 in the game's longest format during that period. However, the right-hander has struggled on previous Ashes tours to Australia, scoring 892 runs at 35.68 with no centuries across 15 matches. The Yorkshireman has been toppled by Hazlewood ten times in the Test arena – but as pointed out by Broad, only three of those dismissals were LBW, the most recent of which occurred way back in 2019. 'I've never heard England's best ever batters front pad called a surfboard,' Broad tweeted. 'Just for clarity. Hazlewood has got Rooty LBW in Test cricket three times. Three.' Since the start of 2013, no cricketer has been dismissed LBW in the Test arena more often than Root with 51, accounting for 19.39 per cent of his wickets, which is noticeably higher than teammates Ben Stokes (12.69), Ollie Pope (15.84) and Zak Crawley (14.29). Warner, who will represent the London Spirit in the upcoming Hundred tournament, and Broad enjoyed an entertaining Ashes rival, with the Englishman removing the Australian opener on 17 occasions. Most LBW dismissals in Tests since 2013 51 – Joe Root (ENG) 36 – Virat Kohli (IND) 33 – Steve Smith (AUS) 31 – Kraigg Brathwaite (WI) 30 – Jonny Bairstow (ENG) Originally published as Ashes war of words erupts as Broad hits back at Warner's swipe
Courier-Mail
5 hours ago
- Courier-Mail
Sam Backo dies aged 64, Maroons, Raiders legend
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