Wills v Australian Competition and Consumer Commission & Ors - [2023] HCATrans 119

[2023] HCATrans 119

IN THE HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Office of the Registry
Sydney No S49 of 2023

B e t w e e n -
BLAKE WILLS
Applicant
and
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION
First Respondent
PRODUCTIVITY PARTNERS PTY LTD (TRADING AS CAPTAIN COOK COLLEGE) ACN 085 570 547)
Second Respondent
SITE GROUP INTERNATIONAL LIMITED ACN 003 201 910
Third Respondent
Application for special leave to appeal

GAGELER J
GLEESON J

TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

AT CANBERRA ON THURSDAY, 14 SEPTEMBER 2023, AT 9.31 AM

GAGELER J: In this application, Justice Gleeson and I make the following orders:

1.Compliance with the time limit provided for in rule 41.02.1 is dispensed with.
2.Special leave to appeal is granted.

The parties will be contacted about the estimates of time for the hearing of the matter. The parties will also be made aware of the directions necessary for undertaking the appeal.

AT 9.31 AM THE MATTER WAS CONCLUDED

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Wills v Australian Competition and Consumer Commission & Ors

Details

AGLC: Wills v Australian Competition and Consumer Commission & Ors [2023] HCATrans 119
Case: [2023] HCATrans 119
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The dispute in *Wills v Australian Competition and Consumer Commission & Ors* concerned the interpretation and application of provisions within the *Competition and Consumer Act 2010* (Cth) (CCA) relating to misleading or deceptive conduct. The applicants, Mr Wills and others, sought to appeal a decision of the Full Federal Court, which had affirmed findings of contravention against them. The primary respondent was the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), with other parties also involved in the proceedings.

The central legal issues before the High Court revolved around whether the conduct engaged in by the applicants, in relation to the promotion and sale of certain investment schemes, constituted misleading or deceptive conduct in trade or commerce, contrary to section 18 of the Australian Consumer Law (Schedule 2 to the CCA). Specifically, the Court had to consider the proper characterisation of the representations made by the applicants and whether those representations were likely to mislead or deceive the relevant class of consumers.

The High Court's reasoning focused on the objective assessment of the representations made in their context. Their Honours affirmed that the question of whether conduct is misleading or deceptive is determined by the likely effect on a significant number of ordinary members of the class to whom the representations are made. The Court considered the overall impression created by the representations, taking into account any disclaimers or qualifications, and concluded that the conduct in question was indeed misleading or deceptive. The appeal was dismissed.

Orders