Butterfield and Director-General, IP Australia (Practice and procedure)

[2025] ARTA 981

Butterfield and Director-General, IP Australia (Practice and procedure) [2025] ARTA 981 (3 July 2025)

ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW TRIBUNAL	)
)	No: 2025/3515
)

Re: Luke Butterfield
Applicant

And: Director-General, IP Australia
Respondent

TRIBUNAL NUMBER:        2025/3515

TRIBUNAL:  Senior Member M. Harrowell

DATE:   3 July 2025

PLACE:          Sydney

Order:

1. The application is dismissed in accordance with s 97 of the Administrative Review Tribunal Act 2024 because the decision to which the application relates is not reviewable by the Tribunal.

Reasons:

The application relates to a decision made under the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth) (Trade Marks Act) by a delegate of the Registrar of Trade Marks. The decision was to permit the trade mark, the subject of the dispute, to proceed to registration. Mr Butterfield was the opponent to the application for registration.

The decision was made under s 55 of the Trade Marks Act. In addition to permitting registration to proceed, the Registrar also made an order that Mr Butterfield pay the costs of the application in accordance with s 221 of the Trade Marks Act.

Mr Butterfield applied to this Tribunal for a review of those decisions. However, s 56 of the Trade Marks Act provides that any appeal is to the Federal Court of Australia or the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2). Otherwise, there is no provision which permits this Tribunal to review the decision of the respondent.

It follows that the decision is not reviewable by the Tribunal and therefore the application must be dismissed under s 97 of the Administrative Review Tribunal Act 2024 (Cth).

...............[SGD].........................................
Senior Member M. Harrowell