A tribunal cannot dismiss an application under s 48 of the SACAT Act on the papers without affording the applicant an opportunity to make oral submissions on the merits, particularly where the applicant is unrepresented and has obvious difficulties with written communication. An internal review that is restricted in scope to the correctness of the dismissal does not cure the procedural fairness deficiency. Courts and tribunals must exercise particular care to consider whether claims by unrepresented parties may have merit notwithstanding gross deficiencies in presentation.
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