Minister for Immigration & Multicultural Affairs v Rajalingam

(1999) 160 ALR 543; [1999] FCA 719

Federal Court of Australia

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Interrogate

Catchwords

1. Immigration
2. › Refugees
3. › Protection visas
4. › Well-founded fear of persecution
5. › Fact-finding by Refugee Review Tribunal
6. › Speculation as to the future
7. › Whether RRT required to consider possibility that findings of fact were wrong
8. › So-called 'What if I am wrong?' test
9. › Migration Act 1958 (Cth), ss 36(2), 65(1), 415(1), 476(1)(e)
1. Administrative Law
2. › Judicial review
3. › Review of fact-finding by administrative tribunal
4. › Distinction between review for error of law and merits review
5. › Whether reviewing court may assess objective cogency of tribunal's reasons
6. › Migration Act 1958 (Cth), s 476(1)
1. Immigration
2. › Refugees
3. › Protection visas
4. › Duty of RRT to inquire
5. › Whether RRT obliged to make further inquiries as to authenticity of documents
6. › Whether failure to inquire constitutes reviewable error
7. › Migration Act 1958 (Cth), ss 420(2)(b), 476(1)(a)

Quick Take

The 'What if I am wrong?' test is not a separate or additional requirement imposed on the RRT, but simply an aspect of the obligation to correctly apply the well-founded fear of persecution test. A reviewing court cannot impute doubt to the RRT based on the court's own assessment of the objective cogency of the RRT's reasons; whether the RRT had doubts must be determined from a fair reading of its reasons. If the RRT's reasons, read fairly and beneficially, show no real doubt about its findings, there is no occasion for it to consider the possibility its findings were wrong, regardless of whether the reviewing court considers the reasoning compelling. Section 420(2)(b) of the Migration Act does not create a ground of review additional to those in s 476, following Eshetu.