Collection Point Pty Ltd v Commissioner of Taxation

Collection Point Pty Ltd sought a copy of the "unclaimed superannuation money register" from the Commissioner of Taxation, who rejected the request. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) affirmed the decision, concluding that the requested information did not exist in discrete form and that creating a new computer program would be required, which would be an extraordinary step. The appellant appealed to the Federal Court, contending that the AAT erred in its construction of s 17(1)(c)(i) of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth). The primary judge dismissed the appeal, finding that the appellant's construction of the section was incorrect and that the need to write a new computer program went to whether the obligation under s 17(1) arose, rather than whether the agency should be exempt from compliance with it under s 17(2). The appellant then appealed to the High Court.

The High Court found that the primary judge correctly rejected the appellant's construction of s 17(1)(c)(i) of the Act and its relationship to s 17(2). The Court held that s 17(1) specifies the conditions in which an agency's obligation to provide access to requested information will arise, while s 17(2) specifies the circumstances in which the agency will be exempt from compliance. The Court found that the appellant's construction conflated the distinct functions of ss 17(1) and 17(2). The Court concluded that the need to write a new computer program went to whether the obligation under s 17(1) arose, rather than whether the agency should be exempt from compliance with it under s 17(2). The appeal was dismissed, and the appellant was ordered to pay the respondent's costs of the appeal.