Australia Contractor Downer Faces Class Action Lawsuit for Misreporting on Contract

Australian contractor Downer said on Monday it faces a shareholder class action for allegedly making some misrepresentations and withholding certain information about a maintenance contract in its domestic utilities business.

Downer is currently under investigation by New South Wales’ Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) for some of its employees allegedly taking kickbacks and favoring certain sub-contractors for a contract awarded by Transport for NSW, the state’s transport authority.

In February, the Sydney-headquartered company said it had misreported the earnings from this contract, with post-tax earnings inflated by about A$22.2 million ($14.82 million) between April 2020 and June 2022.

The probe led its chairman and finance chief to step down last month.

The suit was filed by shareholders of the company, who acquired their shares between April 1, 2020 and Feb. 27, 2023.

Downer said it will defend the proceedings.

($1 = 1.4984 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Harshita Swaminathan; editing by Uttaresh Venkateshwaran and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)