‘Greenwashing erodes consumer trust’ – the ACCC tells business to clean up its act on misleading environmental claims
The ACCC has delivered a clear and strong message to businesses in a speech by its Deputy Clair, Delia Rickard, to The Sydney Morning Herald Sustainability Summit on 20 September 2022 – “Environmental claims and sustainability are a current priority for the ACCC”. The ACCC “won’t hesitate to take enforcement action where we see that […]
ReadmoreFMCG Express | September 2022 Edition
In the latest edition of FMCG Express, Partner Breanna Davies and the Gadens team bring you the latest developments in the consumer, retail and hospitality sectors in Australia. In this issue, our team delves into the issues surrounding positive obligations to eliminate sexual harassment in the workplace; risks and solutions when dealing with commercial contracts […]
ReadmoreDeadline to apply for Priority Status for .au direct domain names is approaching
You may be aware that the deadline to apply for Priority Status for ‘.au’ direct domain names for your existing key Australian domain names is 20 September 2022. This means that if you have an Australian presence and have held a domain name ending in .au (e.g. ‘gadens.com.au’) prior to 24 March 2022 you may […]
ReadmoreSignificant increases to Competition and Consumer Law penalties proposed
Last Friday afternoon, Treasury released exposure draft legislation proposing significant increases to the maximum penalties that apply to various contraventions of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) and the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) by companies and individuals. Interested parties will have to be quick with any comments on the proposed changes, because public consultation […]
ReadmoreA change in Government may put the brakes on Australia’s support of AI and ADM? Or perhaps not?
The recent change to Australia’s Government will likely see a raft of changes. Of particular interest is whether and to what extent the new Labor Government will embrace artificial intelligence (or AI) and automated decision making (or ADM). You will recall the release of the former Coalition government’s Digital Economy Strategy (Strategy) in Budget 2021-2022. […]
ReadmoreAdvertising under the influencers and changes to the TGA Code: Are you ready for 1 July 2022?
We are in a transition period in the world of therapeutic goods advertisements (TG Advertisements). Currently, TG Advertisements must comply with either the Therapeutic Goods Advertising Code (No.2) 2018 (Cth) (Former Code) or the Therapeutic Goods (Therapeutic Goods Advertising Code) Instrument 2021 (Cth) (New Code). The transition period ends on 30 June 2022. A caveat […]
ReadmorePushing ‘START’ on button battery safety standards – Combating a danger lurking in the household
The new button/coin battery safety standards become mandatory on 22 June 2022. So as a manufacturer, importer, wholesaler or retailer of products that contain button batteries, what do you need to know? Purpose Button batteries are used in a broad range of products around our homes. These include watches, handheld computers and remote controls, key […]
ReadmoreFMCG Express | March 2022 Edition
Welcome to the fifth edition of FMCG Express. Overseen by our new Editor, Partner Breanna Davies, Gadens’ team of contributors provide a snapshot of what’s in store for 2022. We are catching up on issues facing our clients and review potential legal developments in the FMCG space: from analysis of proposed changes to the unfair […]
ReadmoreHow to infringe the Privacy rights of millions of Australians with a few clicks… a cautionary tale by Big Brother and his friends
On 14 October 2021, the Australian Information Commissioner and Privacy Commissioner determined that by using its facial recognition platform to crawl the web to scrape biometric information from various sources on the internet and disclose it through its software, Clearview AI, had breached the privacy rights of millions of Australians.[1] Clearview AI has been described […]
ReadmoreFMCG Express | September 2021 Edition
The first half of the year brought signs that the business malaise post-COVID-19 was beginning to lift, however, we are seeing ongoing disruption facing the FMCG sector. We are finally seeing some green shoots with the end of lockdown on the horizon. In this edition, the team explores the evolution of the digital consumer experience; […]
ReadmoreDirect ‘.au’ domain names are coming. Threat or opportunity?
After being on the cards for several years, the administrator of the .au country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD), au Domain Administration Limited (auDA), has recently announced the launch of .au direct registrations in the ‘second level’ (e.g. gadens.au) effective from 24 March 2022. Separately, the Australian Government is currently reviewing the terms on which it […]
Readmore‘A reasonable and commercial construction?’ Patent time extensions after Ono Pharmaceuticals
The Federal Court of Australia has ordered the Commissioner of Patents to grant Bristol Myer Squibb (BMS) a patent term extension (PTE) for cancer drug Opdivo until 2031, providing certainty to industry around Australia’s intellectual property regime. Background BMS and Ono Pharmaceutical sought judicial review by the Federal Court of Australia after the Australian Patents […]
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