Self Care Corporation Pty Ltd v Green Forest International Pty Ltd (No 6)

Self Care Corporation Pty Ltd (the plaintiff) brought proceedings against Green Forest International Pty Ltd (the defendant) in the Supreme Court of Victoria. The dispute concerned allegations of misleading and deceptive conduct in contravention of section 18 of the Australian Consumer Law, and breach of contract, arising from the defendant's sale of a business to the plaintiff. The plaintiff sought damages for losses allegedly suffered as a result of the defendant's conduct.

The central legal issues before the Court were whether the defendant had engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct by representing that the business had a certain level of profitability and by failing to disclose material information regarding its financial performance. The Court was also required to determine whether the defendant had breached express or implied terms of the sale agreement, and if so, what damages were recoverable by the plaintiff.

Manousaridis J found that the defendant had engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct by representing the business's profitability in a manner that was not substantiated by the evidence. His Honour applied the principles established in cases concerning misleading representations about business performance, emphasizing the need for representations to be factually accurate and not to create a false impression. The Court also considered the defendant's disclosure obligations under the contract and the Australian Consumer Law, finding that certain omissions amounted to misleading conduct. The Court determined that the plaintiff had established a breach of contract and misleading and deceptive conduct, and proceeded to assess the quantum of damages.