Ajayi (Migration)

The applicant, Ms. Ajayi, sought judicial review of a decision by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) which affirmed the refusal of a Visitor (Class FA) visa (subclass 600) to the visa applicant, who had since passed away. The review applicant, Ms. Ajayi, was the mother of the deceased visa applicant. The AAT's decision was based on the assessment that the visa applicant was not a genuine temporary entrant.

The primary legal issue before the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia was whether the AAT had erred in law in affirming the refusal of the visa. Specifically, the court was required to consider whether the AAT had adequately addressed the evidence before it, particularly in light of the visa applicant's death, and whether the Tribunal had properly applied the genuine temporary entrant criteria. The court also considered whether the review applicant's failure to attend the Tribunal hearing constituted a fatal flaw in her application for review.

The Court found that the AAT had not erred in law. It reasoned that the AAT was entitled to proceed with the review in the absence of the review applicant, as she had been given notice of the hearing. Furthermore, the Court held that the AAT had properly considered the available evidence, including the information pertaining to the visa applicant's circumstances and intentions, and had applied the correct legal principles in assessing whether the visa applicant was a genuine temporary entrant. The death of the visa applicant did not, in itself, invalidate the AAT's assessment of the applicant's intentions at the time the visa was applied for.

The application for judicial review was dismissed.