Walker v Northern Beaches Council [2022] NSWCATAD 8

Walker v Northern Beaches Council [2022] NSWCATAD 8

The Tribunal did not have jurisdiction because service of notice on the Information Commissioner before making the application is a mandatory precondition (jurisdictional fact) under s 110(4) of the GIPA Act. As this condition was not met, no valid application was before the Tribunal. Even if it were, the proposed...

Source-derived case information.

Parties
Applicant: Philip Walker; Respondent: Northern Beaches Council
Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
11 January 2022
Procedural Posture
Administrative Law Application for Approval to Make Access Application Under Restraint Order / Application for Approval Before the Tribunal, Determination at First Instance
Outcome
Application dismissed for want of jurisdiction (failure to serve notice on Information Commissioner as required by s 110(4) GIPA Act).
Legal Topics
Restraint Orders Under Government Information (public Access) Act 2009 (nsw), Jurisdictional Facts and Procedural Preconditions, Access to Government Information Via Website Decommissioning, NCAT Summary Dismissal and Jurisdiction, Interpretation of 'government Information'
Administrative Law Access to Information Restraint Orders Under Government Information (public Access) Act 2009 (nsw) Jurisdictional Facts and Procedural Preconditions Access to Government Information Via Website Decommissioning NCAT Summary Dismissal and Jurisdiction Interpretation of 'government Information'

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Parties

Philip Walker

Applicant

Northern Beaches Council

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Administrative Law Application for Approval to Make Access Application Under Restraint Order / Application for Approval Before the Tribunal, Determination at First Instance

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether Tribunal had jurisdiction to deal with application for approval to make access application under s 110(1) where applicant had not served notice on Information Commissioner as required by s 110(4) of the GIPA Act
  2. 2 Whether the prior service of such notice is a jurisdictional fact
  3. 3 Whether proposed application was misconceived, for a wrongful purpose or lacking in substance

Ratio Decidendi

The Tribunal did not have jurisdiction because service of notice on the Information Commissioner before making the application is a mandatory precondition (jurisdictional fact) under s 110(4) of the GIPA Act. As this condition was not met, no valid application was before the Tribunal. Even if it were, the proposed application was misconceived, for a wrongful purpose (to compel a policy decision, not just access information), and lacking in substance, as the apparatus of the decommissioned website is not 'government information' and the agency does not hold the information sought.

Court Disposition

Application dismissed for want of jurisdiction (failure to serve notice on Information Commissioner as required by s 110(4) GIPA Act).

Orders

  • The application is dismissed.