Google’s victory over the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) at the High Court in Canberra cleared the search engine company of misleading customers through its sponsored links, clarifying that internet advertising is not the responsibility of the host.

Misleading conduct

Technology law expert John Swinson, head of King & Wood Mallesons’ Brisbane office, told Lawyers Weekly that the case was in the balance as the ACCC needed to prove that Google was ‘an actor principally involved in advertising content’ rather than just an intermediary.
In its ruling, the High Court found that Google was not liable for the misleading conduct of the advertisers - overturning last year’s full federal court decision that had sided with the ACCC.
‘[The decision] keeps Google in business ... if there are millions of ads appearing in search results each day, how can Google practically police those ads to ensure compliance with the law?’ said Mr Swinson.