CLV16 v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection & Anor

The applicants, CLV16 and others, sought judicial review of decisions made by the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection and the Department of Home Affairs concerning their applications for protection visas. The core of the dispute revolved around the lawfulness of the Minister's delegate's assessment of the applicants' claims for protection, particularly in relation to the application of the adverse information provisions under the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). The matter was heard by the High Court of Australia.

The High Court was required to determine whether the delegate had properly considered and applied the provisions of section 424A of the *Migration Act*, which mandates that a decision-maker must notify an applicant of any adverse information that might be the reason for refusing to grant a protection visa and provide an opportunity for the applicant to respond. Specifically, the Court had to consider whether the delegate's failure to provide the applicants with a specific document containing adverse information, and the subsequent reliance on that information in refusing their visa applications, constituted a jurisdictional error.

The Court reasoned that section 424A imposes a mandatory procedural obligation on the decision-maker to ensure procedural fairness. Gageler and Gordon JJ held that the delegate's failure to provide the applicants with the adverse information document, and thus an adequate opportunity to respond to it, meant that the delegate had not complied with the requirements of section 424A. This non-compliance was found to be a jurisdictional error, rendering the delegate's decisions invalid. The Court emphasised that the purpose of section 424A is to afford applicants a fair opportunity to address adverse material that might lead to the refusal of their claims.

The High Court ordered that the applications for judicial review be granted, the decisions of the delegate be quashed, and the matters be remitted to the Minister for reconsideration according to law.