Australian Competition and Consumer Commission v Master Wealth Control Pty Ltd (No 2) [2024] FCA 703

Procedural Posture

Regulator and Consumer Protection Proceeding / Interlocutory Application for Permission to Produce Documents With Redactions in Response to a Notice to Produce

Legal Issues

1. 1 ['Whether the ACCC should be permitted to produce documents responsive to a notice to produce with redactions to personal information and identifying information of complainants and third parties who had not consented to disclosure.' 'Whether public interest immunity justified non-disclosure of information identifying complainants and third parties in consumer complaints.' "Whether the respondents' asserted need to test complaints outweighed the public interest in confidentiality."]

Ratio Decidendi

The ACCC was permitted to redact personal and identifying information because the public interest in maintaining confidentiality of complainants and third parties, protecting their choice about disclosure, preventing potentially unwelcome approaches, and avoiding discouragement of future complaints outweighed the respondents' interest in disclosure. The respondents' interests were weakened because the substance of the complaints and unredacted copies of complaints from consenting complainants had been disclosed, and issues about whether complaints came from real customers could be considered at the penalty hearing without overriding the public interest in redaction.

Court Disposition

Interlocutory application granted; redactions allowed; respondents ordered to pay the applicant's costs of the interlocutory application.

Orders

• ['The applicant be permitted to produce documents in response to the notice to produce filed on 27 May 2024 with redactions applied to: (a) personal information, including name and contact details; and (b) any other information which is capable of allowing a person to be identified, and which relates to any person...