IBA Annual Conference Sydney 2017

8 Oct - 13 Oct 2017

Room C2.4, Convention Centre, Level 2

Session information

Striking the right balance in consumer protection: Australia as a role model or nanny state?

Wednesday 11 October (1430 - 1730)

Room C2.4, Convention Centre, Level 2

Committee(s)

Product Law and Advertising Committee (Lead)
Class Actions Committee
Intellectual Property and Entertainment Law Committee

Description

Cigarettes in plain packaging! Graphic warnings for alcohol and video games! Higher taxes on sugar-sweetened drinks! Stiff fines for cycling without a helmet and picnicking without a permit! Around the world, there are many calls like these for tougher regulations to nudge consumers towards healthier lifestyles and restrict purveyors of unhealthy goods, all for the sake of public health and consumer protection. Advocates argue that these measures are needed to combat predatory sales and marketing practices, while opponents raise concerns about personal liberty and property rights of businesses. Australia has frequently placed itself at the forefront of this debate, which affects many industries and often goes to the heart of a country’s constitutional guarantees and trade agreements. This session will hear from both sides of these competing concerns and consider whether Australia, or anywhere else, has managed to strike the right balance or has instead merely become a ‘nanny state’.

Session / Workshop Chair(s)

Gregory L Fowler Shook Hardy & Bacon, Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Co-Chair, Product Law and Advertising Committee
Marc E Shelley AB InBev, New York, New York, USA; Corporate Counsel Forum Liaison Officer, Product Law and Advertising Committee
Andrew Wiseman Allens, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Speakers

Laure Alexandre SpiritsEUROPE, Brussels, Belgium
Scott Gregson Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Calvin Leung null, Montréal, Québec, Canada
Sarah Susak Coca-Cola South Pacific, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Eric Windholz Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia