AMI v King

The parties in this case were AMI and King, with the nature of the dispute being alleged insider trading, acquisition of shares in contravention of a 20% threshold, and the effect of pari passu allotment and prospectus allotment exceptions. The court hearing the matter was the Federal Court of Australia. The central legal issues that the court was required to decide were whether King, as a grantee of an option to purchase shares at a price significantly below the market price, possessed price-sensitive information and whether the exceptions for information concerning own proposed or actual transactions applied. Additionally, the court had to consider whether the acquisition of shares was in contravention of the 20% threshold and the effect of the pari passu allotment and prospectus allotment exceptions.

The court examined the relevant provisions of the Corporations Act and relevant case law to determine whether King possessed price-sensitive information. The court found that King did not possess price-sensitive information, as the option was granted before the relevant information became public. Regarding the exceptions for information concerning own proposed or actual transactions, the court held that they did not apply in this instance. In terms of the acquisition of shares, the court found that it was not in contravention of the 20% threshold. Finally, the court considered the effect of the pari passu allotment and prospectus allotment exceptions, and found that they did not apply to the circumstances of this case.

The outcome of the case was that King was not found to have engaged in insider trading, and the acquisition of shares did not contravene the 20% threshold. The court did not find the exceptions for information concerning own proposed or actual transactions, pari passu allotment, or prospectus allotment to be applicable in this instance. The final orders of the court were that AMI's claims against King were dismissed, with no orders as to costs.