Boxing Control Regulations (Amendment) (ACT)

The applicants sought a review of the Boxing Control Regulations (Amendment) (ACT), which amended the Boxing Control Regulations 1993 to include a boxing contest at the Tuggeranong Police and Citizens’ Youth Club, Grattan Court, Wanniassa on 16 April 1994. The applicants, David Lamont and Terry Connolly, argued that the amendment was invalid because the regulation was not published in the ACT Gazette prior to its commencement. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory.

The central legal issue was whether the amendment to the regulations was invalid because it was not published in the ACT Gazette prior to its commencement. The applicants argued that the regulation was not valid as it did not comply with the requirement to be published in the ACT Gazette before it came into effect. The respondents contended that the regulation was valid, as the requirement for publication in the Gazette was a formality, and the regulation was still valid even if it was not published.

The court found that the regulation was indeed invalid because it was not published in the ACT Gazette prior to its commencement. The court held that the requirement for publication in the Gazette was not merely a formality but was a substantive requirement that needed to be complied with for the regulation to be valid. The court found that the regulation was not valid because it was not published in the Gazette as required by the law. The applicants' argument was accepted, and the amendment to the Boxing Control Regulations was declared invalid.

The court ordered that the amendment to the Boxing Control Regulations be declared invalid and of no effect. The boxing contest at the Tuggeranong Police and Citizens’ Youth Club, Grattan Court, Wanniassa on 16 April 1994, which was the subject of the amendment, was not authorised under the Boxing Control Regulations 1993. The court's decision meant that the boxing contest could not proceed as planned.