Dekker v Medical Board of Australia

The matter of Dekker v Medical Board of Australia involved a medical practitioner, Dekker, who was charged with improper conduct in a professional respect by the Medical Board of Australia. The dispute was heard by the State Administrative Tribunal of Western Australia, which upheld the Board's decision. Dekker appealed the Tribunal's decision to the Supreme Court of Western Australia.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the Tribunal could rely on its own expertise to determine the professional standards applicable to medical practitioners, whether there was a specific duty on medical practitioners to render assistance in emergency situations that was generally accepted by the medical profession at the time of the alleged misconduct, and whether the Tribunal had correctly applied the concept of a general duty or norm to care for the sick in the specific circumstances of the case. The court was also required to determine whether the Tribunal's findings were supported by evidence and whether the appeal should be remitted to the Tribunal for a fresh hearing.

The Supreme Court found that the Tribunal had erred in law by relying on its own expertise rather than seeking external expert evidence to determine the applicable professional standards. The court also found that the Tribunal had erred in law by applying a general duty or norm to care for the sick to the specific circumstances of the case without sufficient evidence. The Tribunal's findings were made in the absence of evidence, and therefore, the appeal was allowed without remitter to the Tribunal for a fresh hearing.

The final orders of the court were that leave to appeal was granted, and the appeal was allowed. The decision of the Tribunal was set aside, and no remitter was ordered.