Cooper v Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission

In Cooper v Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, the applicant sought judicial review of the decision of the second respondent to refer a complaint to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission. The applicant alleged that the second respondent had breached her right to freedom of political communication, as protected by section 7 of the Constitution, by referring the complaint. The case was heard in the Federal Court of Australia.

The legal issues before the court included whether the second respondent's actions in referring the complaint to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission were authorised by any law and whether those actions breached the applicant's constitutional rights. The court had to determine whether the second respondent had the authority to refer complaints under the relevant legislation and whether such referrals were subject to any limitations that might protect constitutional rights.

The court found that the second respondent did have the authority to refer complaints under the relevant legislation. However, the court held that the second respondent's actions in referring the complaint did not breach the applicant's constitutional rights. The court reasoned that the referral was not an exercise of legislative or executive power but rather a function of the administrative process, which was not subject to the same constitutional limitations as legislative or executive actions. The court further held that the applicant had not demonstrated that the referral had a significant chilling effect on her freedom of political communication.

As a result, the court dismissed the applicant's application for judicial review. The court ordered that the second respondent was to pay the applicant's costs.