How to Check a Business Operator's Court Record Before You Invest

Every time an Australian court records a conviction, that conviction becomes a matter of public record. Every time a regulatory body imposes a fine or accepts an enforceable undertaking, that decision can be accessed. The problem is not that the information does not exist — it is that most investors do not know where to look.

This is the search routine that could have revealed Adrian Campbell's documented history to any investor who took the time to use it.

Step 1: ASIC Company and Officeholder Search

Start at connectonline.asic.gov.au. ASIC's free company search allows you to search by company name, ACN, or ABN. More importantly, you can search by person name to find all companies with which an individual is or has been associated as a director, secretary, or officeholder.

This search will reveal business name history — the full list of companies an individual has been associated with. An operator who has been through multiple company names across multiple sectors over a period of years warrants heightened scrutiny.

Step 2: Federal Court Judgment Search

The Federal Court of Australia publishes its judgments publicly at fedcourt.gov.au and through AustLII at austlii.edu.au. Search both the person's name and any company names revealed by the ASIC search.

The judgment in Campbell v McIntyre (No 2) [2026] FCA 1279 is publicly available and freely accessible. A search for "Adrian Campbell" in the Federal Court's judgment database returns that judgment.

Step 3: ACCC and Scamwatch Records

Visit accc.gov.au and scamwatch.gov.au. The ACCC publishes enforcement actions and media releases. Scamwatch publishes warnings about identified scam operators and investment schemes.

Step 4: State Fair Trading Records

In Queensland, the Office of Fair Trading maintains records of enforcement actions. The 2015 and 2018 ACL convictions discussed in this publication were prosecuted through the Queensland consumer-protection framework. State fair-trading websites publish enforcement outcomes.

Step 5: The Bank Account Check

If you have been asked to transfer money to an Australian bank account, find out the company name linked to that account. With the company name and ABN/ACN, you can conduct the searches above. If funds have already been transferred and you believe you have been defrauded, contact the police fraud squad in the state where that company is registered.

Step 6: Simple Internet Search

Search the operator's full legal name combined with: "fraud," "conviction," "ASIC," "ACCC," "fair trading," "scam," "complaint." Do the same with each business name. This search — taking five minutes — would have returned publicly available information about Campbell's documented history.