Edwards v Olsen

This is a case stated to the Full Court pursuant to SCR 72, arising in the context of an action prosecuted by the plaintiffs against the defendants in which damages are claimed for alleged misfeasance in public office, negligence and negligent misrepresentation. The Full Court was asked to answer questions of law relating to the validity of certain administrative policies and regulations concerning the regulation of fishing activities in South Australian waters. The plaintiffs, Edwards and Deep Sea Ark, claimed that the defendants' actions and policies were unlawful or wrongful, and/or that they negligently misrepresented the true legal position to the plaintiffs. The Court was required to determine the validity of various administrative policies and regulations, as well as the legality of certain actions taken by the defendants. The Court concluded that several of the policies and regulations were invalid, and that certain actions taken by the defendants were unlawful. For instance, the Court found that the "owner-operator" policy was not a valid administrative policy or a lawful policy pursuant to prerogative powers. The Court also held that the policy controlling the number of fishing units was not a valid policy. Furthermore, the Court determined that it was not lawful to direct the plaintiffs not to employ a person to take abalone for sale, or to refuse to register more than one boat for each plaintiff to take fish for sale. The Court further held that it was not lawful to cancel or refuse to renew a licence, permit or certificate on the ground that a similar licence was held in another state. The Court also found that certain regulations were invalid, such as Regulation 17 and Regulation 21A of the Managed Fisheries Regulations 1971. Additionally, the Court held that it was not lawful to consider the amount of proposed consideration when considering applications to transfer, or to refuse to issue boat authorisation certificates to a corporation. However, the Court found that it was lawful to refuse to register a corporation as the owner of a boat to be used for taking abalone. The Court returned the case to the trial court with the answers to the questions of law posed.