CDPP v Country Care

Overview

The case involves the first criminal cartel prosecution of individuals and the first involving a purely Australian corporation.

It is alleged that Country Care Group, its managing director and a former employee engaged in cartel conduct 'involving assistive technology products used in rehabilitation and aged care, including beds and mattresses, wheelchairs and walking frames'

The accused were committed to trial in the Federal Court on 13 March 2019. The trial date was been pushed back several times and eventually commenced on 1 March 2021.

On 2 June 2021 the Jury returned a verdict of not guilty.

Federal Court

Pre-trial

Following committal the matter was filed in the Federal Court on 14 March 2019 (Order by a Committal Court - Section 23AB(1)(a) or (e) Federal Court of Australia Act 1975 filed by CDPP on 14 March 2019)

The first case management hearing was heard on 19 March 2019 before Justice Wigney (by video conference between Melbourne and Sydney). The Prosecutor was ordered to file and serve an Indictment by 14 May 2019. An administrative listing was heard before Justice Bromwich on 14 May 2019. Further pre-trial case management hearings were held throughout 2019 and 2020 (most recently 18 November 2020).

The trial by jury was originally listed to commence 14 October 2019 in before Justice Bromwich in the Federal Court of Australia (Victorian registry) but was subsequently pushed back.

Trial

The trial commence 15 March 2021

History

At the first case management hearing Justice Wigney ordered that a trial be listed for hearing to commence on 14 October 2019 with an estimated duration of 6 weeks.

On 31 July 2019 Justice Bromwich ordered that the original hearing dates beginning 14 October 2019 be vacated and that the trial be listed for hearing to commence in Melbourne on 3 February 2020 and scheduled to run until 16 March 2020.

A case management hearing was held on 6 November 2019 and a further interlocutory hearing held from 11-12 November 2019; judgment on that to was delivered at 4:15 on 26 November 2019 (application by accused to sever and temporarily stay counts certain counts in the indictment was dismissed). Subsequently leave to appeal was granted and the trial date pushed back:

Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions v The Country Care Group Pty Ltd (No 2) [2019] FCA 2201
Hearing: 18 December 2019. Leave to appeal granted.

Appeal from: Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions v Country Care Group Pty Ltd [2019] FCA 2200
Application to stay certain counts: denied

Administrative listings several times throughout 2020. On 25 August 2020 Justice Bromwich ordered, among other things, that the matter be listed for pre-trial hearing on 9-13 November 2020 by way of video conference. On 3 September 2020 orders were made in relation to confidentiality of documents filed.

Pre-trial hearings from 10-13 November and Pre-Trial Case Management Hearing 18 November. Orders made that transcript of pre-trial hearing be kept confidential until after a jury verdict is delivered.

Committal: Magistrates' Court

The charges were first listed for mention before the Magistrates' Court of Victoria in Mildura on 14 March 2018. They were subsequently listed for committal in Melbourne Magistrates' Court.

Listed for Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 6 June 2018 at 9:30am

Accused: Robert Martin Hogan (Case #J10675774) ➤
Accused: Cameron Harrison (Case #J10518584) ➤
Accused: The County Care Group Pty Ltd (Case #J10677523) ➤

Country care committal mentions postponed to 15 August 2018 at 10am

On 13 March 2019 the Country Care Group Pty Ltd, its Managing Director and a former employee were committed to stand an all of the cartel charges laid against them by the CDPP.

Charges

Criminal cartel proceedings were commenced on 15 February 2019.

According to the ACCC's media release:

[T]he charges relate to alleged cartel conduct involving assistive technology products used in rehabilitation and aged care, including beds and mattresses, wheelchairs and walking frames.'