A grant of leave under s 113(2)(b) of the Administrative Decisions Tribunal Act 1997 to extend an appeal to a merits review is not dependent upon the appeal first raising or establishing a question or error of law; the only prerequisite is the grant of leave itself. Where an enabling Act confers a specific and unrestricted right of appeal (as s 34(1) of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1986 did for veterinary surgeons), that specific provision prevails over the general appeal provisions in ss 112 and 113 of the ADT Act. A tribunal denies procedural fairness where it imposes a specific restrictive penalty condition without foreshadowing the particular restriction in a meaningful way so as to afford the party an opportunity to adduce evidence and make submissions on it.
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