Commissioner of Police for New South Wales v Lawrance

The Commissioner of Police for New South Wales sought judicial review of a decision made by the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) of New South Wales. The IRC had found that the removal of a police sergeant from the Police Force was harsh and directed the Commissioner to re-employ the former sergeant at the lower rank of Senior Constable. The matter came before the Court of Appeal of New South Wales.

The primary legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the IRC's decision was affected by jurisdictional error, specifically concerning its power under s 89(2) of the *Industrial Relations Act 1996* (NSW) to direct the re-employment of a former police officer at a lower rank, and whether there was sufficient evidence to support the IRC's finding that such re-employment was practicable.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the Commissioner's summons. It reasoned that s 89(2) of the *Industrial Relations Act 1996* did empower the IRC to direct re-employment at a lower rank, and that there was evidence before the IRC to support its finding of practicability. Consequently, the IRC's decision was not affected by jurisdictional error. The applicant, the Commissioner of Police, was ordered to pay the first respondent's costs.