Mookhey v Infrastructure NSW [2017] NSWCATAD 345

Mookhey v Infrastructure NSW [2017] NSWCATAD 345

Infrastructure NSW did not establish reasonable grounds for its Cabinet information claim. The evidence did not support that the whole of Documents 1, 5 and 11 was prepared for the dominant purpose of submission to Cabinet, particularly where the usual practice was to submit extracts and the whole business case was submitted only on occasion. For Documents 1 and 11, Infrastructure NSW did not identify or substantiate the parts said to reveal Cabinet decisions or deliberations. For Documents 1, 5 and 11, the evidence did not establish that the business cases revealed or tended to reveal the position of the Minister for Planning in Cabinet. Because Infrastructure NSW did not discharge its...

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
29 November 2017
Procedural Posture
Administrative Review of a Decision Refusing Access to Government Information Under the Government Information (public Access) Act 2009 (nsw) / Determination on the Papers; Principal Judgment
Outcome
The decision of Infrastructure NSW in respect of Documents 1, 5 and 11 was set aside; access to that information was ordered; the remainder of the application was dismissed as withdrawn.
Legal Topics
['government Information (public Access) Act 2009 (nsw)' 'cabinet Information' 'overriding Public Interest Against Disclosure' 'dominant Purpose of Submission to Cabinet' 'ncat Administrative Review' 'determination on the Papers']
['administrative Law' 'government Information Access'] ['government Information (public Access) Act 2009 (nsw)' 'cabinet Information' 'overriding Public Interest Against Disclosure' 'dominant Purpose of Submission to Cabinet' 'ncat Administrative Review' 'determination on the Papers']

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Procedural Posture

Administrative Review of a Decision Refusing Access to Government Information Under the Government Information (public Access) Act 2009 (nsw) / Determination on the Papers; Principal Judgment

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ["Whether there were reasonable grounds for Infrastructure NSW's claim that Documents 1, 5 and 11 were Cabinet information under Sch 1 cl 2(1)(b) of the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW)." 'Whether Documents 1 and 11 revealed or tended to reveal Cabinet decisions or deliberations under Sch 1 cl 2(1)(d) of the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW).' 'Whether Documents 1, 5 and 11 revealed or tended to reveal the position that the Minister for Planning was considering taking, or had been recommended to take, on a matter in Cabinet under Sch 1 cl 2(1)(e) of the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW).' 'Whether the matter should be remitted to Infrastructure NSW for reconsideration if the Cabinet information claim was not upheld.']

Ratio Decidendi

Infrastructure NSW did not establish reasonable grounds for its Cabinet information claim. The evidence did not support that the whole of Documents 1, 5 and 11 was prepared for the dominant purpose of submission to Cabinet, particularly where the usual practice was to submit extracts and the whole business case was submitted only on occasion. For Documents 1 and 11, Infrastructure NSW did not identify or substantiate the parts said to reveal Cabinet decisions or deliberations. For Documents 1, 5 and 11, the evidence did not establish that the business cases revealed or tended to reveal the position of the Minister for Planning in Cabinet. Because Infrastructure NSW did not discharge its...

Court Disposition

The decision of Infrastructure NSW in respect of Documents 1, 5 and 11 was set aside; access to that information was ordered; the remainder of the application was dismissed as withdrawn.

Orders

  • ['A hearing is dispensed with and the matter is to be determined on the papers.' 'The decision of Infrastructure NSW in respect of the information in Documents 1, 5 and 11 is set aside and, in substitution for that decision, Infrastructure NSW is to provide the applicant with access to that information within 28...