Competition and Consumer Act

Question 1

Choose an Australian engineering or other company with which you are familiar or which is of interest to you. With respect to the competition provisions in the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) (CCA) that you have studied in this course undertake the following: (850 words)

(a) Explain the strategies adopted by your chosen company towards regulatory compliance and how this is documented in the company's policies and or through its website. (225 words)

(b) Comment on the extent to which the competition law compliance strategy reflects and promotes legal literacy and awareness throughout the organisation. (225 words)

(c) After studying the concepts and legal principles in Chapter 16 of Tony Ciro, Vivien Goldwasser and Reeta Verma, Law and Business, 4th ed, Oxford University Press Australia, Melbourne, 2014 what recommendations would you make to improve your chosen company's management activity in competition law compliance? (400 words)

Question 2

Bronwyn recently purchased a cafe from Espresso Pty Ltd. As part of the negotiations, Tony the Chief Financial Officer of Espresso sent emails to Bronwyn making representations both in relation to the profit in the previous financial year and projected profitability of the cafe for the next 3 years. However, subsequent investigation of the historical accounts revealed that the figures for the previous financial year were grossly overstated and the projections were arguably fanciful numbers concocted by Tony, in order to induce Bronwyn to purchase the cafe. Furthermore, after having now operated the cafe for a period of six months, Bronwyn has realised that the information contained in the emails from Tony were in fact false (this has been established by the discovery of a series of source documents which were located on the premises in a locked cabinet).

Required

Advice Bronwyn of what rights and remedies might be available to her as a result of the conduct of Espresso Pty Ltd and Tony under the consumer protection provisions of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) (CCA) and as found in the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) in Schedule 2 of the CCA. Comment on the role of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) in relation to any remedies Bronwyn may be able to claim. (850 words)

Note: In your answer you are required to discuss relevant sections of the Australian Consumer Law and the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) and related case law, as appropriate.

Question 3

'The whole point of the move from the centralised system of bargaining at the enterprise level was to get employers and unions dealing with each other face-to-face and responding to their workplace's particular circumstances, rather than the old game of unions pulling on a strike to oblige the referee to intervene and impose a compromise.' (400 words)

Question 4

Reflecting on your experience in LAWS 20061 Management Law answer the following:

1. Comment on how your critical thinking and problem-solving skills have evolved.

2. Explain how and in what ways your appreciation of legal and/or ethical issues in the context of management decisions has developed and/or changed.