Ann15 v Minister for Immigration

Ann15 (the applicant) sought judicial review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration (the respondent) to refuse her a protection visa. The applicant had previously had her application for a protection visa refused by the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT). The matter came before Judge Cameron of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia.

The central legal issues before the Court were whether certain country information relied upon by the RRT in its decision-making process was required to be notified to the applicant under section 424A(1) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). This involved determining whether the information pertained to an individual or a class of persons, and if the latter, whether it was of a kind that necessitated disclosure.

Judge Cameron reasoned that section 424A(1) mandates notification of information that is "about a person" or "about a class of persons" if that information is relevant to the applicant's claim and is not publicly available. The Court found that the country information in question, while general in nature, was sufficiently specific to be considered "about a class of persons" within the meaning of the section. As this information was not publicly available and was relevant to the applicant's claim for protection, the RRT had erred by failing to notify the applicant of its contents and provide an opportunity to respond.

Consequently, the Court found that the RRT's decision was affected by jurisdictional error. The Court set aside the RRT's decision and remitted the matter to the Refugee Review Tribunal to be heard and determined according to law.