How does the ACL apply both as a law of the Commonwealth and as a law of the Australian states and territories?

The ACL has been enacted as a schedule (Schedule 2) to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth).

Application as Commonwealth law

Section 131 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) says that the ACL applies as a law of the Commonwealth to the conduct of corporations. One particular provision of the ACL also applies to the supply of goods or services by individuals to corporations. These provisions rely on the Commonwealth government's power to enact legislation with regard to corporations. Reliance on this power is necessary because the Commonwealth government does not have a direct constitutional power to regulate consumer transactions.

Application as a law of the states and territories

The individual Australian states and territories entered into an Intergovernmental Agreement, binding themselves to apply the ACL as a law of their state or territory.

The result of these arrangements is that the new ACL applies uniformly throughout Australia, both as a law of the Commonwealth and as a law of the states and territories. It replaces the consumer protection provisions of the old Trade Practices Act 1974 (Cth) and a large number of other state and territory Acts that were concerned with consumer protection.