1819065 (Refugee)

The applicant, a refugee, sought judicial review of a decision by the Refugee Tribunal (the Tribunal) to affirm the refusal of a protection visa. The applicant had failed to appear at a scheduled hearing before the Tribunal, which led to the dismissal of their application. Subsequently, the applicant did not apply for reinstatement of their application within the prescribed time, and the Tribunal confirmed this dismissal. The matter came before Rebecca Lee.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the Tribunal's decision to affirm the dismissal of the protection visa application was affected by an error of law. This involved considering whether the Tribunal had properly applied the relevant legislative provisions concerning the dismissal of applications due to non-appearance and the subsequent failure to seek reinstatement.

Rebecca Lee affirmed the Tribunal's decision. The court reasoned that the applicant's failure to appear at the hearing, and their subsequent failure to apply for reinstatement within the statutory timeframe, were critical factors. The Tribunal had correctly applied the provisions of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) and associated regulations, which mandated dismissal in such circumstances and did not provide for further review once the reinstatement period had expired without action. The court found no error of law in the Tribunal's conclusion that it lacked jurisdiction to further consider the application.