Armstrong Strategic Management and Marketing Pty Limited v Expense Reduction Analysts Group Pty Ltd (No 8)

In the matter of Armstrong Strategic Management and Marketing Pty Limited versus Expense Reduction Analysts Group Pty Ltd, the dispute arose from allegations of unfair contract terms and misleading or deceptive conduct. The Federal Court of Australia was tasked with determining the admissibility of expert evidence provided by Dr. Andrew Stewart, an expert witness for the plaintiff. The defendants contested the admissibility of the expert evidence on the grounds that the plaintiff had failed to provide Dr. Stewart with the expert witness code of conduct prior to the preparation of his expert report.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the failure to provide the expert witness code of conduct to Dr. Stewart could be remedied by a subsequent affidavit asserting compliance with the Code. Additionally, the Court needed to consider whether the defendants were precluded from objecting to the evidence due to an earlier interlocutory order and whether the probative value of the evidence was outweighed by the risk of unfair prejudice to the defendants.

The Court held that the failure to provide Dr. Stewart with the expert witness code of conduct could not be remedied by a subsequent affidavit asserting compliance with the Code, as this would not have cured the failure. The Court further found that the defendants were not precluded from objecting to the evidence, despite the earlier interlocutory order. However, the Court concluded that the probative value of the expert evidence was not outweighed by the risk of unfair prejudice to the defendants, and therefore, the evidence was admissible.

The Court ordered that the expert evidence provided by Dr. Andrew Stewart be admitted, and the defendants were not precluded from cross-examining Dr. Stewart on the basis of the failure to provide him with the expert witness code of conduct. The Court also ordered that the defendants be allowed to present their own expert evidence in response to Dr. Stewart's report.