Commerce Regulations 1913 (Amendment)

Overview

The Statutory Rules of 1919, No. 233, represents a legislative instrument enacted under the Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Act 1905. This Act was introduced to address the issue of ensuring accurate and honest trade descriptions in commerce, aiming to prevent deceptive practices in the marketplace. The regulation was made by the Governor-General in Council, following advice from the relevant Minister, and is set to take effect from 1 January 1920. The specific regulation modifies the existing Commerce Regulations by adding a requirement that any goods containing paper must have this fact explicitly stated through indelible stamping, with the word "paper" clearly visible and applied at least once every yard of the material. This amendment seeks to uphold the policy objective of the Act by ensuring that consumers receive truthful information about the contents of the goods they purchase, thereby protecting them from misleading trade descriptions.

Scope and Application

The Statutory Rules 1919 No. 233 made under the Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Act 1905 applies to the trade descriptions of goods that include paper, irrespective of the proportion of paper contained within such goods. This regulation is designed to ensure that any goods containing paper are appropriately labelled with the word ‘paper’ by means of indelible stamping in conspicuous characters at least once every yard. This applies to all entities engaged in the sale of goods containing paper, thereby impacting various industries involved in the production, packaging, and distribution of such goods. The regulation has a national jurisdictional reach, extending across the Commonwealth of Australia, and is intended to provide clear and consistent labelling standards to protect consumers from misleading trade descriptions. The regulation does not explicitly state any exclusions, exemptions, or thresholds, and its application is primarily defined by the presence of paper in the goods. Subordinate instruments may further detail specific implementation requirements or additional amendments, extending or restricting the application as necessary.

Key Provisions

The key operative sections of this legislation pertain to the amendment of existing regulations under the Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Act 1905. Specifically, Sub-regulation (i) of regulation 8 is being amended by adding requirements concerning the labelling of goods containing paper (section 1). This amendment mandates that when paper is present in the goods, in any proportion, the trade description must include the word "paper" and this must be done through indelible stamping in conspicuous characters, at least once every yard of the material (section 1). This amendment ensures that the presence of paper in any goods is clearly and permanently indicated to the consumer or purchaser. The obligations imposed by this regulation are primarily on manufacturers, distributors, and sellers of goods that contain paper. They are required to ensure that the trade description of their goods accurately includes the word "paper" and that this information is applied by indelible stamping in a manner that is clearly visible. This obligation extends to any proportion of paper in the goods, meaning even a small amount of paper must be disclosed in the trade description (section 1). The intent behind this is to provide transparency and ensure that consumers are fully informed about the composition of the goods they are purchasing. Failure to comply with these labelling requirements can lead to various civil and criminal consequences. While specific penalties are not detailed in this excerpt, the Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Act 1905 generally provides for penalties that can include fines and, in severe cases, imprisonment. The penalties can vary depending on the nature and extent of the breach, with repeat offenders potentially facing harsher penalties. The precise maximum penalties would need to be referred to in the main Act or other related regulations. The overarching goal is to enforce compliance and protect consumers from misleading or incomplete trade descriptions.