Hollows v Macquarie University [2009] NSWSC 820

Hollows v Macquarie University [2009] NSWSC 820

The summons as an appeal was plainly liable to be dismissed because no statutory appeal lay from the Tribunal's refusal of leave. Even treating the proceedings as an attempt to invoke the Court's supervisory jurisdiction, the grounds advanced by Mr Hollows were manifestly unarguable: complaints about injustice and assessment of evidence did not disclose judicial review error; the Tribunal's reasons showed it considered the material put before it; denial of a full hearing was inherent in the statutory leave-filtering process; and the bias allegation had no objective foundation. The proceedings therefore disclosed no reasonable cause of action and were dismissed under rule 13.4.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
20 August 2009
Procedural Posture
Application for Summary Dismissal of Proceedings Seeking Review of an Administrative Decisions Tribunal Refusal of Leave / Summary Dismissal Application Under Rule 13.4(1) of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005
Outcome
The proceedings were dismissed and the plaintiff was ordered to pay the defendant's costs.
Legal Topics
['summary Dismissal' 'reasonable Cause of Action' 'judicial Review' 'error of Law on the Face of the Record' 'jurisdictional Error' 'bias' 'refusal of Leave by Administrative Decisions Tribunal']
['procedure' 'administrative Law' 'anti Discrimination Law'] ['summary Dismissal' 'reasonable Cause of Action' 'judicial Review' 'error of Law on the Face of the Record' 'jurisdictional Error' 'bias' 'refusal of Leave by Administrative Decisions Tribunal']

Case Brief

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

More case intelligence is available

Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.

Full judgment text Downloadable case file Legal principles 1 Authorities cited 2 Party arguments 2 Amounts and remedies 1
Sign in to unlock

Procedural Posture

Application for Summary Dismissal of Proceedings Seeking Review of an Administrative Decisions Tribunal Refusal of Leave / Summary Dismissal Application Under Rule 13.4(1) of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ["Whether the proceedings disclosed a reasonable cause of action in circumstances where there was no statutory right of appeal from the Tribunal's refusal of leave under s 96(1) of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977." 'Whether any proposed judicial review grounds disclosed an arguable claim for prerogative relief.' "Whether the Tribunal's decision involved error on the face of the record, jurisdictional error, or bias."]

Ratio Decidendi

The summons as an appeal was plainly liable to be dismissed because no statutory appeal lay from the Tribunal's refusal of leave. Even treating the proceedings as an attempt to invoke the Court's supervisory jurisdiction, the grounds advanced by Mr Hollows were manifestly unarguable: complaints about injustice and assessment of evidence did not disclose judicial review error; the Tribunal's reasons showed it considered the material put before it; denial of a full hearing was inherent in the statutory leave-filtering process; and the bias allegation had no objective foundation. The proceedings therefore disclosed no reasonable cause of action and were dismissed under rule 13.4.

Court Disposition

The proceedings were dismissed and the plaintiff was ordered to pay the defendant's costs.

Orders

  • ['The proceedings are dismissed.' "The plaintiff is to pay the defendant's costs."]