Govt has to stop bank fee gouging: lawyers

Lawyers say it's up to the government to stop banks gouging high fees from customers, after the High Court ruled in favour of the big banks.

A six-year class action against the ANZ came to an end in the High Court on Wednesday when Maurice Blackburn lost the case it brought, which argued the bank's credit card penalties were illegal.

"The ball is now firmly in the government's court if consumers are to be provided with real protection from banks using fees to gouge customers," lawyer Andrew Watson said.