Trade Practices Commission v Queensland Aggregates Pty Ltd & Anor [1981] FCA 35

Federal Court of Australia|1981-03-10|Before: Franki J

Trade Practices - Proceedings for alleged contraventions of s.47 by Trade Practices Commission

Application for injunction and pecuniary penalty

Application seeking joinder as respondents by persons alleged to have suffered damage - Application refused.

AND: QUEENSLAND AGGREGATES PTY. LTD AND BRIAN WHITE

JUDGE MAKING ORDER: FRANKI J. DATE OF ORDER: 10 MARCH 1981

The applicants are to pay the costs of the first

This is an application which is before me to add third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh respondents in an action by the Trade Practices Commission against Queensland Aggregates Pty. Ltd. and one Brian White. I propose to deliver oral judgment in this matter rather than delay to deliver a written judgment with

The Trade Practices Commission seeks the relief set out

(1) An order for a pecuniary penalty to be paid by the first respondent and the second respondent pursuant to sections 76 and 77 of the Trade Practices Act 1974

the Act restraining the first respondent from offering to supply work as a cartage contractor in contravention of section 47(1) of the Act on condition that the offeree acquire a truck of a particular description from a third peson.

the Act restraining the second respondent from, inter alia, aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring a person to act as it is sought to restrain the first respondent.

The allegations against the first respondent are based on alleged contraventions of s.47(1) and (6) of the Act. Fach contravention is alleged to be an offer to supply work as a cartage contractor to a named person or persons on condition that that person or persons acquire a Ford Louisville truck from Denmac Ford Pty. Ltd. The second respondent is alleged to have,

inter alia, aided, abetted, counselled or procured each

So far as is relevant, s:47(1) of the Act provides that a corporation shall not in trade or commerce engage in the practice of exclusive dealing, and s.47(6) that a corporation engages in exclusive dealing if it supplies or offers to supply goods or services on the condition that the person to whom the corporation supplies or offers to supply the goods or services will acquire goods or services of a particular kind or

description directly or indirectly from another person. The offerees and the dates of the respective offers alleged are:

(1) G.A. Ahlguist in or about May 1979. (2) M.W. Hardy or alternatively M.W. Hardy and P.J. Hardy in or about May 1979. (3) L.A. Romeo or alternatively L.A. Romeo and K.J. Romeo in or about May 1979. (4) P.J. Coulson or alternatively P.J. Coulson and P.wW. Coulson in or about May 1979. (5) D.R. Tritton and A.F. Tritton in or about May 1979. (6) D.C. Stewart or alternatively D.C. Stewart and J.M. Stewart in or about late May or June 1979. (7) E.K. Peck or alternatively Apslawn Holdings Co. Pty. Ltd. in or about June 1979. (8) E.J. King in or about July or August 1979. (9) K.D. Kalczuk and P.J. Kalezuk in or about August 1979. When the summons for directions first came before me a notice of motion had been filed by the persons numbered 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6 seeking to be joined as further applicants in the proceedings. The applicants in support of the notice of motion, hereinafter called "the applicant" or "the applicants", alleged that they had accepted the offers made to them respectively as alleged in the statement of claim and they had suffered loss or

damage. The affidavit was by the solicitor for these applicants

"My clients seek to be joined as parties to these proceedings in order to preserve their right to compensation or other relief under section 87(1) of the Trade Practices Act 1974, in the event that the Court might otherwise be disposed to make an order thereunder in their favour."

So far as appears to be relevant, s.87(1) of the Act

"Where, in a proceeding instituted under ... this Part, the Court finds that a person who is a party to the proceeding has suffered ... loss or damage by conduct of another person that was engaged in... in contravention of a provision of Part IV... the Court may, whether or not it grants an injunction under section 80 or makes an order under section 80A or 82, make such order or orders as it thinks appropriate against the person who engaged in the conduct or a person' who was involved in the contravention ... if the Court considers that the order or orders concerned will compensate the first-mentioned person in whole or in part for the loss or damage or will prevent or reduce the loss or damage."

Sub-section 2 of s.87 sets out the orders which may be

"(d) an order directing the person who engaged in the conduct or a person who was involved in the contravention constituted by the conduct to pay to the person who suffered the loss or damage the amount of the loss or damage." Initially all parties stated that they were prepared to

consent to the joinder sought by the applicants, but consent by counsel for the first respondent and by counsel for the second respondent was qualified to some extent. Farly in the hearing counsel for the applicants stated that "it might be appropriate to add my clients as respondents rather than applicants". He relied on order 6 rule 2 of the Rules of this Court. He then submitted that the applicants could cross-claim against the first and second respondents under order 5 rule 2. At that stage senior counsel for the Trade Practices Commission supported the application of the applicants to be added as respondents and

added "because it may result in the saving of costs".

Counsel for the applicants also submitted that the measure of damage,. if any, proved to have been suffered by his clients would be relevant on the question of any penalty the Court might fix. I said that I was not then satisfied that I should join the applicants in the action, but that I wished to see the form of the claim which they would seek to make if I did so join them. Counsel for the applicants then proposed that he would file a draft of the proposed statement of claim against the

first and second respondents. I then adjourned the matter for

The solicitor for the applicants has now made a further affidavit setting out the draft of the proposed statement of

claim of the applicants against the first and second respondents if joinder is ordered. The affidavit also alleges that the

applicants are not financially well off and that some further

particulars of the damage claimed could be given later.

The draft statement of claim of the applicants alleges offers to the respective applicants in the same terms as are alleged in the statement of claim of the Trade Practices Commission and each offence is alleged to have been in contravention of s.47(1) of the Act by the first respondent. The second respondent is also alleged to have been in breach of s.47(1) of the Act by, inter alia, aiding, abetting, counselling

or procuring the alleged conduct of the first respondent.

The damage alleged by the applicants is specified separately in relation to each respondent or respondents sought

to be added. As an example, the claim by G.A. Ahlquist is:

"(a) He entered into the Lease of a Ford Louisville Truck which he would not otherwise have done.

(b) He entered into a Lease of the said truck resulting in higher lease payments than he would have entered into had he arranged for the finance company to purchase the truck from a dealer other than Denmac Ford Pty. Ltd.

(c) He was unable to enter into a contract of insurance with a company of his choice, was unable to pay more expensive premiums than should have been payable and was unable to claim for damage to the said truck whilst uninsured.

(d) He suffered loss of income by reason of the first and second respondents not providing the quantity of work which they had represented was available to the said respondents and the said respondents purchased the said Ford Louisville Truck from Denmac Ford Pty. Ltd.

(e) He leased the said Ford Louisville Truck which was represented to him as bearing a 1979 compliance plate whereas the compliance plate was dated March 1977 and the truck was thereby worth less than the price at which it was purchased by the lessor and the lease payments paid by the respondent should have been correspondingly less.

(£) He leased a truck with capacity larger than could lawfully be carried on Queensland roads." In the case of P.J. Coulson and P.W. Coulson, D.R. Tritton and A.F. Tritton and D.C. Stewart and J.M. Stewart, somewhat similar damage was alleged and, in addition it was alleged that the trucks were defective necessitating expensive repairs and causing loss of income.

Order 6 rule 2 as amended by statutory rule 87 of 1980

"Two or more persons may 'be joined as applicants or respondents in any proceeding-

(i) If a separate proceeding were brought by or against each of them, as the case may be, some common question of law or of fact would arise in all the proceedings; and (ii) all rights to relief claimed in the proceeding (whether they are joint, several or alternative) are in respect of or arise out of the same transaction or series of transactions; or

This order permits persons to be joined as applicants or as respondents where the terms of rule 2(a)(i) and (ii) are

satisfied, or where the Court gives leave to do so.

When the matter resumed before me, counsel for the applicants, while not abandoning arguments based on order 6 rule 2(a) relied particularly on order 6 rule 2(b), arguing that I should give leave to the applicants to be joined, if that course

Counsel for the applicants also argued that the question of damage was relevant in relation to any penalty which might be fixed by the Court, and that the legislative intention of s.87(1) contemplated that persons seeking remedies provided by s.87(2)

should be able to become parties to an existing action within

He also submitted that s.83 of the Act was not necessarily of value to his clients, since in the existing

proceedings the Commission did not represent the applicants, and

might or might not seek findings of fact which would assist the

applicants. He also submitted that the question of procedure would be one for the judge hearing the matter, and the provisions

of order 6 rule 6 could also be used to ensure separate trials if

Senior counsel for the Trade Practices Commission now took the attitude that it neither supported nor opposed the application, and he said that he did not wish to offer any argument concerning any possible advantage _ Or possible

disadvantage of the joinder sought by the applicants.

Counsel for the second respondent opposed the application, arguing that the statement of claim proposed by the applicants against the first and second respondents raised a whole new series of different causes of action, dependant on different breaches of the Act than those alleged. He relied, for example, on the matters referred to under (b), (c) and (d) of the damage claimed by G.A. Ahlgquisty, the terms of which I have

He also cited the additional damage to which I have referred alleged by several applicants, namely that the trucks involved were defective, necessitating expensive repairs and

However, I think it is appropriate to say that I would regard any joinder as being only for the purpose of permitting

the applicants to set up against the first and second respondents claims for damages for any breaches of the Act alleged to have

The damages particularized could only be claimed to the extent that s.87 of the Act warranted their recovery. Counsel for the second respondent argued that order 6 rule 2(a) did not apply and relied upon Payne v. Young in the High Court, (1980) 54

He argued that joinder should not be ordered under order 6 rule 2(b) because that would only complicate and delay the

Counsel for the first respondent adopted the arguments

of counsel for the second respondent and opposed the application.

I will consider first the position under order 6 rule 2(a). The question of whether all rights to relief claimed in a proceeding are in respect of or arise out of the same transaction

or series of transactions was considered in Payne v. Young, to

which I have just referred. Order 16 rule 1 of the High Court Rules was then being considered, and it is in substantially the same terms as order 6 rule 2(a) of the Rules of this Court. At

"The consequence is that under par.(a) of the rule joinder of separate causes of action accruing to different plaintiffs is authorized when the relief claimed is in respect of, or

arises out of, the same or a particular series of transactions. Joinder is not authorized when the relief claimed is in respect of, or arises out of, two or more different series of transactions, when the participation of each individual plaintiff is limited to participation in one series of transactions, the other plaintiffs not participating in that series."

In the case before me the applicants were not, so far as the evidence before me goes, engaged in one transaction or one series of transactions. Apparently they were engaged in transactions peculiar to each individual applicant. I am

satisfied that order 6 rule 2(a) does not authorize the grant of

The question then arises whether I should grant leave

under order 6 rule 2(b). The leave I could give is for joinder as applicants or respondents. The application is for joinder as respondents.

It seems odd to join parties as respondents for the purpose of making claims against other respondents under order 5 rule 2. That rule appears to be for the purpose of enabling respondents, properly made respondents by the person initiating the proceeding, to obtain relief against "another party or a third party", thus facilitating the policy set out in s.22 of the

However, no detailed submissions were directed to the

provisions of order 5 rule 2. It is not entirely clear that if the applicants were joined the proposed statement of claim against the first and second respondents would fall within order

In my opinion, the facts of this case are not such as to warrant my granting the application. The applicants do not seek an injunction under s.80 and could not seek a penalty under s.76

of the Act. They merely seek to be added to obtain damages.

The orders they seek do not fall under any of the rather specialized orders under s.87(2), but they appear to seek only

As at present advised, it appears to me that the measure of damages which could be awarded in an appropriate case under s.82 of the Act does not differ from the measure which could be

The issues in the claim for damages by each applicant are distinct from the issues in the claim for damages by each other applicant. The right to any damage depends upon the proof of each separate offer alleged and the proof of the particular damage suffered by each individual applicant. No proof of a

course of conduct appears to be relevant. Any applicant, once joined, would be a party for all

purposes, and in my opinion the granting of the application would only introduce into the litigation detailed questions of damages, all of a diffferent nature or somewhat different nature, which

would more conveniently be dealt with in separate actions.

Counsel for the applicants could not direct me to any authority where a court had exercised a discretion"to join a person so that that person could get relief against one of the parties in an existing action. Such a case in my view is to be distinguished from the case of an existing party in an action seeking to join another person so that relief can be obtained by

one of the existing parties against that other person.

If the test be, as counsel for the applicant submitted, that joinder should be made where it is just and convenient to do so, in my opinion the joinder sought would not satisfy this test. Counsel for the applicant said that he did not rely on order 6 rule 8 of the Rules of this Court. No detailed examination of the appropriate procedure for the conduct of the case, if joinder

However, I consider very real difficulties might arise,

I have in mind the various matters to which I have referred and in the exercise of my discretion, I refuse the

(Submissions as to costs. First and second respondent

sought costs. Trade Practices Commission did not seek costs.)

The order that I make is that the applicants are to pay the costs of the first and second respondent in the notice of motion and no order as to the costs of the Trade Practices

I certify that this and the {3 preceding pages are a true copy of the Reasons for Judgment herein of his Honour

In catchwords delete "0.5 r.2" and insert "0.5 r.1(2)".

On page 5, line 9, page 11, lines 21 and 22, and page 12, lines 2 and 5 delete "order 5 rule 2" and insert

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Judgment (94 paragraphs)