Cmr of State Revenue v Roadshow Distributors Pty Ltd

The Commissioner of State Revenue (the Commissioner) appealed to the High Court of Australia against a decision of the Supreme Court of Victoria concerning the assessment of stamp duty on a distribution agreement. The dispute arose from the Commissioner's assessment of stamp duty on a distribution agreement between Roadshow Distributors Pty Ltd (Roadshow) and a film producer, which the Commissioner treated as a dutiable 'conveyance' of property. Roadshow had argued that the agreement was not dutiable as it did not convey any property.

The High Court was required to determine whether the distribution agreement constituted a dutiable conveyance of property under the relevant Victorian legislation. Specifically, the court had to consider whether the rights granted to Roadshow under the agreement, which included the exclusive right to distribute films in Australia and New Zealand, amounted to an interest in property that was conveyed by the agreement.

The High Court, in a joint judgment, held that the agreement did not effect a conveyance of property. The court reasoned that the rights granted to Roadshow were contractual rights, not proprietary rights. While these rights were exclusive and valuable, they did not constitute an interest in the films themselves, but rather a right to exploit them in a particular manner. The court distinguished between the creation of a new right (a contractual right to distribute) and the transfer of an existing proprietary interest. Therefore, the agreement was not a dutiable conveyance.

The appeal was dismissed, and the Commissioner was ordered to pay Roadshow's costs.