The Background: The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ("ACCC") has proposed allowing health insurer Hospitals Contribution Fund of Australia Limited ("HCF") and participating dentists to agree on the maximum...more
4/25/2018
/ Anticompetitive Behavior ,
Australia ,
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) ,
CCA ,
Competition ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Hospitals ,
Price-Fixing ,
Rebates ,
Statutory Immunity
Highlighting Changes of Interest in Competition and Consumer Law -
ACCC Issues Paper on Digital Platforms Inquiry -
Summary -
In December 2017, the Australian government directed the ACCC to conduct an inquiry into...more
4/23/2018
/ ASIC ,
Australia ,
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) ,
Big Data ,
Cartels ,
CCA ,
Competition ,
Competition Authorities ,
Criminal Antitrust Litigation ,
Data Collection ,
Digital Platform Liability ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Foreign Exchanges ,
Immunity ,
Online Advertisements ,
Popular ,
Price-Fixing ,
Social Media
The Bill: The Singapore Parliament passed a bill giving the Competition Commission of Singapore (or CCS) regulatory powers over consumer protection. The expanded body is now (effective 1 April 2018) called the Competition and...more
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced product safety priorities for 2018. A key priority is for the Commission to work towards the introduction of a General Safety provision within the...more
The Background: Earlier in 2018, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission warned that several domestic companies would face criminal cartel prosecutions in 2018.
The Situation: The ACCC has begun to follow...more
Message from the Editors -
The holiday and new year period was not a quiet one in Australian competition law. Many of the recommendations from an extensive assessment of the Australian competition law were implemented. In...more
The Situation: The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ("ACCC") has identified a 39 percent increase in consumer guarantee reports in 2017 as compared with 2016, from 21,000 to 29,000.
Looking Ahead: The ACCC...more
The Situation: Following consumer complaints, the Australian Competition and Consumer Regulator ("ACCC") has released a report reminding airlines of obligations when dealing with the flying public.
Looking Ahead: The ACCC...more
The Situation: Australia has adopted a package of changes to its antitrust laws that are designed to give more power to its antitrust enforcement agency, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, and to increase...more
12/8/2017
/ Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Australia ,
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) ,
Competition ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Forum Shopping ,
Market Abuse ,
Mergers ,
Monopolization ,
New Rules ,
Sensitive Business Information
The Australian competition law environment has undergone some important changes of late. In this Update, we discuss the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's ("ACCC") increasing focus on the unfair contracts...more
12/5/2017
/ Australia ,
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) ,
Australian Consumer Law ,
Competition ,
Harper Review ,
Health Care Providers ,
Medicare ,
Public Health ,
Small Business ,
Supply Chain ,
Unfair Contract Terms ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
New Australia rules banning businesses from charging excessive payments on credit, debit, and other payments have become law, as discussed in our August 2016 Alert. Initially the ban applied only to large businesses....more
The Situation: The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ("ACCC") has released new guidelines on mergers in the media industry.
Looking Ahead: The new guidelines provide some—but not sufficient—clarification on...more
11/10/2017
/ Acquisitions ,
Australia ,
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) ,
Commerce Commissions ,
Competition ,
Mergers ,
New Guidance ,
Public Benefits ,
Public Broadcasting ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Television Broadcast Stations
The Ruling: A computer retailer was order to pay a fine for violating the Australian Consumer Law.
The Impact: Businesses must ensure that the terms and conditions in their warranty notices comply with the law, or risk an...more
Recent amendments to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2010 (Cth) ("ASIC Act") and the Competition and Consumer Law Act (Cth) ("CC Act") extended the unfair contract terms regime, which previously...more
5/8/2017
/ ASIC ,
Australia ,
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) ,
Commercial Leases ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Contract Terms ,
Indemnity ,
Independent Contractors ,
Limitation of Liability Clause ,
Telecommunications ,
Unfair Contract Terms ,
Waste Management