Allied Express Transport Pty Ltd v Transport Workers' Union of Australia NSW Branch

The Fair Work Commission was the forum for a dispute between Allied Express Transport Pty Ltd and the Transport Workers' Union of Australia NSW Branch. The union sought to have the hearing judge, Deputy President J.D. Anderson, disqualified on the basis that he had previously acted as legal counsel for the employer in a related matter. The union argued that the judge's prior involvement in the employer's legal team created a reasonable apprehension of bias.

The primary legal issue for the Commission was whether the judge's past role as an adviser to the employer constituted a ground for disqualification. The union contended that the principles of natural justice and the perception of impartiality were compromised by the judge's former association with the employer. The employer, in contrast, argued that the prior relationship was insufficiently close or recent to warrant disqualification.

The Commission considered the principles of judicial impartiality and the perception of fairness in its reasoning. It noted that while the judge had acted as legal counsel for the employer in a different matter, there was no evidence of the judge having any current involvement or bias in the present case. The Commission concluded that the former relationship did not create a reasonable apprehension of bias sufficient to disqualify the judge from hearing the matter. Accordingly, the application to disqualify the judge was dismissed.