Ford Motor Company of Australia Ltd v Jefferson Ford Pty Ltd

Ford Motor Company of Australia Ltd (the appellant) brought an action against Jefferson Ford Pty Ltd (the respondent) in the Federal Court of Australia. The appellant sought relief for alleged breaches of trade practices under the Trade Practices Act 1974 (Cth). The appellant claimed that the respondent had engaged in conduct that was misleading or deceptive in breach of sections 51AC and 51AD of the Act. The respondent, in turn, filed a cross-claim against the appellant and other companies. The appellant filed a motion to have certain parts of the respondent's defence struck out and for judgment on the cross-claim.

The legal issues before the court were whether subparagraphs (c) and (d) of paragraph 13 of the respondent's defence were properly pleaded and could be maintained, and whether the court should grant judgment to the cross respondents on the cross-claim. The court needed to determine if the respondent's defence was valid and, if not, whether it could be amended. Additionally, the court had to consider whether the cross-claim could proceed or if there were parts of it that should be struck out.

The court found that subparagraphs (c) and (d) of paragraph 13 of the respondent's defence were not properly pleaded and could not be maintained. These parts of the defence did not adequately allege a defence to the appellant's claims. The court granted judgment to the cross respondents on the cross-claim, as the cross-claim contained allegations that were not relevant to the cross respondents' liability. The court also struck out paragraphs 44-56 of the cross-claim, which were not relevant to the cross respondents' liability. The court reserved costs and dismissed the motion, except for the parts relating to the orders mentioned above. The proceeding was listed for directions on 29 June 2007.