Draoui v District Court of South Australia

The applicant, Mr Draoui, sought leave to appeal against a decision of a District Court Judge who had refused to disqualify himself from hearing judicial review proceedings on the grounds of apprehended bias. The District Court Judge had also adjourned the application for permission to proceed with the judicial review proceedings. The application for leave to appeal was heard in private.

The primary legal issue before the Full Court of the Supreme Court of South Australia was whether the District Court Judge's refusal to disqualify himself and the subsequent adjournment of the application for permission to proceed constituted an appealable decision. Relatedly, the Court considered whether the Judge had taken an irrelevant consideration into account when making his decision, and whether there were other grounds of appeal that were reasonably arguable.

The Court reasoned that the refusal to disqualify oneself on the grounds of apprehended bias is not an appealable decision in itself, as it does not finally determine the rights of the parties. Furthermore, the adjournment of the application for permission to proceed with the judicial review was a procedural step and not a final determination. The Court found that the grounds of appeal were not reasonably arguable, and therefore, leave to appeal was refused.