Minister for Immigration & Multicultural & Indigenous Affairsv SGJB

(2003) 195 ALR 24; [2003] FCAFC 290

Full Court of the Federal Court

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For Australian Law.

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Interrogate

Catchwords

1. Administrative Law
2. › Judicial review
3. › Jurisdictional error
4. › Procedural fairness
5. › Denial of natural justice
6. › Tribunal misleading applicant as to treatment of witness evidence
7. › Whether denial deprived applicant of possibility of successful outcome
8. › Migration Act 1958 (Cth), s 474
1. Administrative Law
2. › Judicial review
3. › Bias
4. › Actual bias
5. › Standard of proof
6. › Whether factual errors and unfair process sufficient to establish actual bias
7. › Whether inference of actual bias must be only reasonable inference open
1. Immigration
2. › Refugee Review Tribunal
3. › Conduct of review
4. › Procedural fairness
5. › Opportunity to call witnesses
6. › Whether RRT misled applicant into not calling witness
7. › Whether privative clause protects decision made in breach of natural justice
8. › Migration Act 1958 (Cth), ss 424A, 426(3), 474

Quick Take

Where a tribunal member communicates to an unrepresented applicant that a witness's written evidence is sufficient and favourable, thereby dissuading the applicant from calling the witness, the tribunal cannot subsequently reject that evidence without first notifying the applicant and providing an opportunity to respond. A claim of actual bias requires evidence so extreme that no other reasonable inference except actual bias is reasonably open; factual errors in reasoning combined with unfair process will not ordinarily suffice.