DISTRIBUTORS, LTD.

Taranaki Daily News, 14 December 1926, Page 9

DISTRIBUTORS, LTD.

PRIVY COUNCIL APPEAL. JUDGMENT RESERVED. By Telegraph—Press Assn. —Copyright. London, Dec. 10. The Privy Council hae reserved judgment in the appeal by the Crown Milling Co., Ltd., against the decision of the prosecution brought by the Crown under the Commercial Trusts Act. In October last year the New Zealand Court of Appeal reversed the decision of Mr. Justice Sim, who had given judgment for the defendants in the case of the King v. the Crown Milling Company and others. The case was brought under the provisions of section 10 of the Commercial Trusts Act, 1910, which makes it an offence to conspire to monopolise, wholly or partly, tire demand or supply in New’ Zealand of any goods, if such monopoly or control is of such a nature as to be contrary to the public interest. The Crown alleged that this clause covered an agreement made between a company called Distributors, Ltd., and various millowners, whereby - the company was to act as the millowners’ sole agent in selling flour, and the company was to fix the amount of flour each miller could produce and also was to fix the price. If more flour was produced it was to be exported. For the defendants, who were the Crown Milling Co., Ltd., and various other milling and distributing firms throughout New Zealand, and Distributors, Ltd., it was argued that the contract was really of benefit to the public as it encouraged wheat growing. The Court held, by a majority of three Judges to two, that the contract was of a nature contrary to the public interest and created a monopoly. Leave to appeal to the Privy Council was granted later.