application for leave to appeal from interlocutory decision
decision of primary judge striking out amended notice of appeal from decision of then Administrative Appeals Tribunal
where amended notice of appeal did not disclose any question of law
Quick Take
1An appeal from the Administrative Appeals Tribunal under s 44 of the AAT Act must raise a question of law as the very substance of the appeal; complaints about fact-finding, evidentiary weight, or procedural discretions that are recast in legal language do not become questions of law merely by that reformulation.
2Procedural fairness is assessed practically and does not differ in category for litigants with disabilities such as illiteracy; what matters is whether the decision-maker took practical steps to avoid injustice, including affording adequate opportunity to present evidence and understand proceedings.
3The court's duty to assist a self-represented litigant does not extend to providing legal advice, conducting the case on the litigant's behalf, or viewing an unmeritorious case with a favourable eye; assistance is limited to diminishing the disadvantage of self-representation without conferring a privilege over a represented opponent.
