Gambler's regret as Star-dudded suit loses millions

Gambling giant Star Entertainment has learned the house does not always win after a disastrous court loss led to a multi-million legal bill.

The latest legal hammering for the beleaguered casino and hotel operator came after it sought compensation for the replacement of dangerous and outlawed combustible cladding.

The deaths of 72 people in the Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017 led to changes in NSW that banned the use of certain types of cladding.

Star was required to remove and replace the aluminium composite panels on the exterior of its crown jewel, the Star Sydney casino.

It sued Buildcorp in 2020 over earlier rectification projects, seeking $4 million in compensation over the builder's alleged breach of contract.

However, the court awarded a fraction of this - saying Star was entitled to just under $286,000 from Buildcorp for one of these projects.

For the other two - which took up the vast bulk of the claimed compensation - the builder did not breach its contract, the court found.

The lawsuit was fairly disastrous, Justice Kelly Rees wrote on Monday, because Star had only reclaimed a fraction of the $4 million sought and may have sued the wrong party.

"I do not think it can be said that Star Casino has succeeded in this litigation," she wrote.

The casino giant did not bring its own claims against the architect who designed the buildings, The Buchen Group, the judge noted.

Instead, Buildcorp was forced to file its own cross-claim against the architectural firm as well as the fire safety engineer, certifier and subcontractor who installed the panels.

On Monday, Star was ordered to pay more than $1 million to Buildcorp, plus an undisclosed amount to The Buchen Group.

Star's own legal costs in running the lawsuit exceeded $2.4 million.

No wrongdoing has been found against the architects by the court.

The Star declined to comment on Monday's court decision.

Star Entertainment, which has three casinos in Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast, has been on the brink of failure for years after serious governance issues were exposed.

That triggered mammoth fines from regulators, funding issues and a 95-per-cent drop in share price.

The Federal Court in February found former Star chief executive Matthias Bekier and ex-general counsel Paula Martin breached their duties while leading the casino operator.

The pair failed to inform the board of potential risks related to overseas junkets with alleged criminal connections and false claims about customer use of credit cards for gambling purposes.

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