Veterinary Practitioners Board of New South Wales v Kovac

[2026] NSWCA 60

NSW Court of Appeal

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Catchwords

1. OCCUPATIONS — veterinary surgeons — misconduct and discipline — investigation of complaint by Veterinary Practitioners Board — asserted failure to comply with statutory procedures — whether non-compliance with statutory requirements deprived NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal of jurisdiction — jurisdiction of NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal to consider procedural error by the Board — effect of non-compliance

Quick Take

The Court of Appeal held that the Tribunal erred in concluding that any non-compliance with the notice requirements in s 41 of the Veterinary Practice Act 2003 (NSW) automatically deprived it of jurisdiction to hear disciplinary complaints. Properly construed, particularly in light of the 'with appropriate modifications' qualification in s 42(5), the legislative purpose did not disclose an intention that strict compliance with every element of s 41 was a jurisdictional precondition; the Tribunal was required to consider the extent and consequences of the departure, consistent with Project Blue Sky and SZIZO. The Court also held that while the Tribunal was the correct forum to determine whether the Board's compliance with investigative procedures was a precondition to its jurisdiction, the Tribunal constructively failed to exercise jurisdiction by not engaging with the Board's substantive argument that the practitioner had in fact made written representations which the Board considered.