Drug advertisements: A prescription for misleading and deceptive conduct?

Damien Millen, Bond University

Article comments

Millen, Damien (2006) Drug advertisements; A prescription for misleading and deceptive conduct? is published in the Trade Practices Law Journal, Volume 14, Number 4, December 2006, pp. 220-227.
To obtain a copy of this presentation contact the Trade Practices Law Journal

2006 HERDC submission

Abstract

The Federal Court recently considered the application of a s 52 of the Trade Practices Act 1974 (Cth) (the Act) to the sophisticated marketing practices of pharmaceutical companies extolling the virtues of complex products to a specialised audience. In AstraZeneca Pty Ltd v GlaxoSmithKline Australia Pty Ltd [2005] FCA 1645, the court was required to consider whether suggesting to doctors that a drug offered patients "total control" over symptoms of asthma could mislead or deceive. The case, which was affirmed on appeal, is important for several reasons.