Commissioner for NSW Fair Trading, Department of Finance and Services v Luo [2016] NSWSC 1774

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Commissioner for NSW Fair Trading, Department of Finance and Services v Luo [2016] NSWSC 1774 Hearing dates: 9 December 2016 Date of orders: 12 April 2017 Decision date: 12 April 2017 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: Bellew J Decision: (1) The defendant is fined the sum of $18,000.00.

(2) The fine in Order (1) is to be paid within 28 days.

(3) The defendant is to pay the Prosecutor's costs as agreed in the sum of $15,000.00. Catchwords: CRIMINAL LAW – Offences – Selling electrical articles which failed to comply with regulatory specifications – Where defendant sold electrical cables that did not meet Australian standards – Responsibility on part of the seller of such items to ensure that they have the requisite regulatory approval and are therefore safe to use – Entitlement of the public to expect that items which are offered for sale will be safe – Where defendant diagnosed as suffering from mental illness – Relevance of mental illness to considerations of general deterrence Legislation Cited: Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW) Electricity (Consumer Safety) Act 2004 (NSW) Electricity (Consumer Safety) Regulation 2015 (NSW) Cases Cited: Aslan v R [2014] NSWCCA 114 Commissioner for Fair Trading, Office of Finance and Service v Hua Yang Australia International Trading and Investment Pty Limited and Huadi Bi [2016] NSWSC 1380 Director of Public Prosecutions (Cth) v De La Rosa (2010) 79 NSWLR 1; [2010] NSWCCA 194 Iskandar v R [2013] NSWCCA 235 R v Engert (1995) 84 A Crim R 67 R v McMillan [2005] NSWCCA 28 R v Olbrich (1999) 199 CLR 270; [1999] HCA 54 R v Qutami [2001] NSWCCA 353 R v Thomson; R v Houlton (2000) 49 NSWLR 383; [2000] NSWCCA 30 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Commissioner for NSW Fair Trading, Department of Finance and Services – Prosecutor Lu Luo aka Vida Luo – Defendant Representation: Counsel: D Jordan – Prosecutor H Packer – Defendant