A company in liquidation that operated an unregistered managed investment scheme in breach of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) is not precluded by illegality or unclean hands from bringing claims against its former agents to recover funds for the benefit of defrauded investors. The Corporations Act's penal sanctions for operating an unregistered scheme do not render contracts entered into as part of the scheme illegal. The doctrine of unclean hands may be overcome where the company is now under the control of liquidators acting in good faith to reimburse investors.
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