Sabri v Equus Financial Services Ltd

In *Sabri v Equus Financial Services Ltd*, the parties were the plaintiff, Mr Sabri, and the defendant, Equus Financial Services Ltd. The dispute concerned allegations of misleading and deceptive conduct in contravention of section 52 of the *Trade Practices Act 1974* (Cth) (now section 18 of the *Australian Consumer Law*). The matter was heard in the High Court of Australia.

The High Court was required to determine whether Equus Financial Services Ltd had engaged in conduct that was misleading or deceptive, or likely to mislead or deceive, in relation to the sale of a financial product to Mr Sabri. Specifically, the court had to consider whether representations made about the product's performance and risk were false or misleading, and whether these representations caused Mr Sabri loss.

The High Court found that the representations made by Equus Financial Services Ltd regarding the financial product were indeed misleading and deceptive. The court applied the principles established in cases concerning section 52 of the *Trade Practices Act*, focusing on whether the conduct, viewed objectively, had the tendency or capacity to lead a person into error. The court considered the nature of the representations, the context in which they were made, and the characteristics of the target audience, Mr Sabri. The court concluded that the representations created a false impression about the security and profitability of the investment, thereby contravening the Act.

The High Court upheld Mr Sabri's appeal, finding that Equus Financial Services Ltd had engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct. The matter was remitted to the Federal Court of Australia for determination of the quantum of damages to be awarded to Mr Sabri.