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Amid a hit to its shares, AF Legal has settled claims brought against it by a senior lawyer and has confirmed its support of another practitioner who is currently involved in a disciplinary investigation.
AF Legal Group (ASX: AFL), which is responsible for firms like Australian Family Lawyers and Armstrong Legal, said it will spend between $500,000 and $600,000 in the second half of the 2025 financial year to settle a claim brought against it by a senior lawyer.
In a market update, AF Legal said the settlement was without admission and concerned events in 2022, while it was under previous management.
It also confirmed that a $100,000 normalisation recorded in its third-quarter update was included in the total settlement expenses.
In the last six months, its shares have been down 21.43 per cent.
Since the end of February, AF Legal has fallen $0.08 per share. The closing share price on 28 February was $0.20, and it is now trading at $0.12.
In the same update, AF Legal said it anticipated spending another $100,000 to support a lawyer who is currently being investigated by a “regulatory authority”. The matter dates back to 2021.
The group said it made “detailed submissions” in the lawyer’s defence, which were still being considered by the authority.
“The lawyer has practised without incident since and continues to practice,” AF Legal said.
“Unlike the settled matter, the regulatory investigation does not involve any claim for damages or compensation.”
AF Legal said no other legal practitioner employed by the group was currently subject to any proceedings or known investigations.
The legal defence fees were initially disclosed to the market in AF Legal’s 27 February 2025 half-year results.
At that time, AF Legal said discussions with insurers regarding coverage were ongoing, but the company had “decided to be conservative in its approach and expense incurred legal fees”.
Naomi Neilson is a senior journalist with a focus on court reporting for Lawyers Weekly.
You can email Naomi at:
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