Dental Corporation Pty Ltd v Moffet

Dental Corporation Pty Ltd (the applicant) sought special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia from a decision of the Full Federal Court. The dispute concerned the interpretation of section 131(1) of the *Competition and Consumer Act 2010* (Cth) (the Act), which prohibits the misuse of market power. The applicant argued that the Full Federal Court had erred in its construction of this provision.

The High Court was required to determine whether the Full Federal Court had correctly interpreted section 131(1) of the Act, specifically in relation to the elements of the offence and the scope of the prohibition against misuse of market power. The central question was whether the applicant's conduct, which involved the acquisition of shares in a competitor, constituted a misuse of market power under the provision.

Gageler and Gordon JJ granted special leave to appeal and allowed the appeal. Their Honours held that the Full Federal Court had erred in its interpretation of section 131(1). They reasoned that the provision did not require proof of a causal link between the misuse of market power and the contravening conduct. Instead, the provision prohibited conduct that was undertaken for the purpose of misusing market power, or conduct that had the effect of misusing market power. In this instance, the applicant's acquisition of shares was found not to have contravened section 131(1).