deceive. This can be infringed without any proof of intention to mislead. This section and its earlier equivalents have been relied upon in cases ranging from furniture Bell from starting its Australian presence due to the existence of a restaurant named "Taco Bell's Casa" in Sydney. ACL or consumers, is in enforcement. In Australia, unsuccessful litigants are usually obliged to pay the majority of the winner's legal costs. Many cases involving misleading and deceptive conduct are accordingly between two competing businesses as opposed to between business and consumer. While the ACL provides consumer protection for goods and services, the legal costs in seeing those guarantees complied with often outweigh the value of the product itself. Competition Commission effected by the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC). Known as the "consumer watchdog" of Australia, the ACCC has the authority to investigate and research matters relating to competition and consumer protection, as well as educate the public regarding such issues. The ACCC is also concerned with enforcing the ACL by bringing court action against business perceived to have breached their obligations under the ACL. The most recent success for the ACCC was the Federal Court of Australia requiring ReckittBenckiser, manufacturer of the Nurofen pain killer range, to withdraw products that were said on the packaging to treat specific pains (such as migraines or back pain) despite each containing the same active ingredients. The ACCC has also succeeded in court action for a range of problematic practices including misleading "free range" removalists and unfair and aggressive sales pitches for vacuum cleaners. Australian Consumer Law enforcement of product safety standards in Australia. Although it contains no particular standards itself, it provides the Government with the authority to declare certain safety standards for consumer goods or product related services. The ACL stipulates that where such a safety standard exists, a person cannot supply any good that does not comply with those standards nor may they be offered for supply, unless exported outside of Australia and with the approval of the Government. The ACL also prohibits the manufacture, possession or control of any contravening goods where the goods are to be used in the used in trade or commerce. A significant example of such safety standards are the Australian Design Rules (ADRs) which set national standards for the safety, theft resistance and emissions of vehicles. The ADRs, which are made up of a vast collection of separate legislative instruments, provide very technical specifications often based on standards produced by international bodies. The ADRs are not an approvals system, rather manufacturers must self-certify that they comply with all applicable ADRs. It is the threat of investigation and legal action from bodies such as the ACCC that seeks to ensure compliance with the ADRs. provided a press release confirming its investigations into the Volkswagen (VW) Group. to the use of software code in certain diesel-fueled vehicles. This code was capable of determining when a vehicle was being run under test-conditions in order to change engine controls that resulted in a lower output of nitrogen oxides (NOx), thus allowing the vehicles to breach certain emissions standards. investigating two potential breaches by Volkswagen: prohibited by the ADRs and thus breach ACL mandatory safety standards; and relating to environmental benefits or fuel efficiency are factors influencing consumer choice. $1.1 million per breach of the ACL for corporations. The ACCC indicated that VW has yet to confirm the local use of software; however testing by the International Council of Clean Transportation (ICCT) does suggest that some affected vehicles may have breached Australia's emissions standards (a mix of the Euro 4 and Euro 5 standards that were previously enforced in the European Union). In response, VW has agreed to recall the affected vehicles and modify them in order to bring them within Australian emissions standards. The case involving VW is an example of how Australian consumer laws and protection operates around the notion that prevention is far better than treatment. The options for redress are usually quite limited for a single disgruntled consumer. However, breaches of the ACL can still be met with formidable litigants, either in the form of the ACCC or a class-action suit. It is the risk of this court action that provides a significant factor in business seeking to comply with the ACL. 3 Campomar Sociedad Limited v Nike International Ltd |