JCDecaux Australia Pty Ltd v Adshel Street Furniture Pty Ltd [2002] FCA 562

JCDecaux Australia Pty Ltd v Adshel Street Furniture Pty Ltd [2002] FCA 562

Leave to amend was granted because the reformulated amendment was fairly arguable, relied on a confidential agreement produced only after trial commenced, did not presently require adjournment of the trial, and any prejudice or costs thrown away could be addressed by an appropriate costs order and case management....

Source-derived case information.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
06 May 2002
Procedural Posture
Proceedings Under Pts IV and V of the Trade Practices Act 1974 (cth); Interlocutory Application for Leave to Amend Statement of Claim / Application by the Applicant to Amend Its Statement of Claim During Trial
Outcome
Application for leave to amend granted.
Legal Topics
['amendment of Statement of Claim' 'misuse of Market Power' 'aggregation of Market Power' 'prejudice and Costs in Amendment Applications' 'construction of Confidential Agreement']
['practice and Procedure' 'competition and Consumer Law' 'pleadings'] ['amendment of Statement of Claim' 'misuse of Market Power' 'aggregation of Market Power' 'prejudice and Costs in Amendment Applications' 'construction of Confidential Agreement']

Source-derived case record

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Procedural Posture

Proceedings Under Pts IV and V of the Trade Practices Act 1974 (cth); Interlocutory Application for Leave to Amend Statement of Claim / Application by the Applicant to Amend Its Statement of Claim During Trial

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether JCDecaux should be granted leave to file and serve a fourth further amended statement of claim.' 'Whether the proposed amendment raised a new case not yet pleaded or merely an additional basis for an existing market power allegation.' 'Whether any prejudice to Adshel and the PTC could be met by costs orders and case management without adjournment of the trial.' "Whether the amendment would be futile because JCDecaux's construction of the Adshel agreement was untenable." "Whether JCDecaux's proposed reliance on the Adshel agreement to support aggregation or market power was fairly arguable."]

Ratio Decidendi

Leave to amend was granted because the reformulated amendment was fairly arguable, relied on a confidential agreement produced only after trial commenced, did not presently require adjournment of the trial, and any prejudice or costs thrown away could be addressed by an appropriate costs order and case management. The Court was not persuaded that JCDecaux's construction of the Adshel agreement was untenable, so the amendment was not futile.

Court Disposition

Application for leave to amend granted.

Orders

  • ['The applicant be granted leave to file and serve a fourth further amended statement of claim in the terms sought.' "The applicant pay the respondents' costs thrown away by reason of the application for leave to amend, including the costs of and incidental to the notice of motion dated 19 April 2002."]