ACCC

A judge will hit pause on two class actions against Coles and Woolworths over allegedly illusory discounts after hearing a bid to bind group members to the findings in related proceedings by the ACCC. 

A judge has found that Mastercard can maintain legal professional privilege over a document that was inadvertently sent to the ACCC in 2020 after lawyers at Baker McKenzie had to review 100,000 documents in less than two months.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is looking into energy companies’ promotional materials after consumer advocacy group CHOICE complained that offers of savings are designed to overwhelm and confuse while not offering real value.

Google has agreed to pay a $55 million penalty for making anti-competitive agreements requiring Telstra and Optus to pre-install Google Search on Android devices they sold.

Hospitality group EVT Group has acquired hotel management company Pro-Invest Hotels for $74 million to seed the launch of its own brand management business.

Mastercard says legal professional privilege remained over a document after a junior lawyer "inadvertently" sent it to the ACCC in 2020 while the credit card giant was trying to dissuade the regulator from continuing an investigation into alleged anti-competitive conduct.

The competition watchdog has raised concerns over the proposed tie-up of Kegstar and Konvoy -- the only operators in the niche industry of keg pooling -- saying the deal could mean higher prices.

A landmark finding that Apple and Google misused their market power will boost competition claims -- including class actions -- against other dominant digital market players and could prompt the ACCC to consider action, experts told Lawyerly.  

A judge has signed off on a $9 million penalty against online flight bookings service Webjet for misleading air travelers about prices and bookings.

Glencore Coal has lost its case against the Port of Newcastle alleging it has been overcharged shipping fees based on a determination by the competition watchdog.