Director convicted over breach of Fair Trading Act
The New Zealand High Court has overturned a decision made in June this year to discharge the director of a leather furniture company without conviction in spite of having pleaded guilty to six charges of breaching the Fair Trading Act.
At the initial court hearing Naresh Shukla, director of 230 Marua Limited, admitted advertising furniture as being on 'sale' when the price was the same as before, during, and after the 'sale' and claiming that leather lounge suites on sale for NZ$3,000 were sold by other retailers for NZ$6,000 when this was not correct; however, although the company was fined $36,000 plus costs Mr Shukla was discharged without conviction on the basis that his overseas travel for business would be unduly hampered by a conviction.
New Zealand's Commerce Commission appealed the ruling based on the question of whether the judge was correct to grant the discharge without conviction, which may be ordered only if the consequences of a conviction would be out of all proportion to the offence. Overturning the decision and convicting Mr Shukla, High Court judge Justice Baragwanath this week stated, “It is the purpose of a sentence to sting and in a case such as the present to serve as a deterrent. While the fines against the company were substantial there was good reason to ensure that Mr Shukla's penalty was not limited to the reduced performance of his company.”
