Dwyer v Craft Printing Pty Ltd

Dwyer v Craft Printing Pty Ltd concerned an appeal to the New South Wales Court of Appeal regarding alleged misleading and deceptive conduct. The appellant, Mr. Dwyer, a sole director of a company, had guaranteed the debts of that company. Subsequently, the company ceased to be the contracting party receiving services from the respondent, Craft Printing Pty Ltd, with a different company within the same group continuing to receive those services. The core of the dispute revolved around Mr. Dwyer's conduct in relation to this change in the contracting entity.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether Mr. Dwyer's inaction in permitting the continuation of the trading relationship under the new corporate structure, without disclosing the change to the respondent, constituted a "refusal to act" within the meaning of the relevant legislation. Furthermore, the court had to consider whether any such refusal to act was "inadvertent." The ultimate question was whether Mr. Dwyer was liable for misleading and deceptive conduct.

The Court reasoned that Mr. Dwyer's conduct was not a mere omission or inadvertence but rather positive conduct. By allowing the trading relationship to continue under the same circumstances as the previous arrangement, without informing the respondent of the shift in the corporate entity receiving the services, Mr. Dwyer engaged in conduct that was misleading and deceptive. The court applied principles of Australian consumer law, finding that the failure to disclose the material change in the contracting party created a false impression for the respondent. Consequently, the appeal was dismissed with costs.