CWW17 v Minister for Immigration

This matter concerned an application purportedly made under s 477(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) seeking an extension of time to apply for a remedy under s 476 of the Act. The application was directed at a decision communicated to the applicant on 6 April 2017. The applicant failed to appear at the hearing scheduled for 22 February 2018, prompting the respondent Minister to apply for dismissal of the application for non-appearance.

The Court was required to determine whether to dismiss the application due to the applicant's absence, or to proceed with the hearing. The applicant's filed affidavit merely attached the decision in question, which referred to an application made under s 48B of the Act. This section relates to circumstances where a non-citizen in the migration zone has had a protection visa application refused and is therefore prevented by s 48A of the Act from making a further application for a protection visa.

The Court noted that while there was no direct evidence that s 48A applied to the applicant, the fact that the applicant had applied to the Minister under s 48B provided a sufficient basis to infer that s 48A did indeed apply. Despite the applicant's non-appearance, the Court considered it appropriate to proceed with the hearing, rather than dismiss the application outright, in accordance with its powers under r 13.03C of the *Federal Circuit Court Rules 2001* (Cth). The Court then proceeded to consider the substantive merits of the application.