EEM17 v Minister for Home Affairs

In the Federal Court of Australia, the applicant, EEM17, sought judicial review of a decision made by the Minister for Home Affairs. The dispute concerned the Minister's refusal to grant the applicant a protection visa. The applicant alleged that the decision was unlawful and unreasonable.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the Minister's decision to refuse the protection visa was affected by jurisdictional error. This involved examining whether the delegate of the Minister had properly considered all relevant factors and applied the correct legal principles in assessing the applicant's claims for protection, particularly in light of the applicant's stated fear of persecution.

Justice Kendall found that the delegate had failed to adequately consider crucial aspects of the applicant's evidence regarding their fear of persecution. Specifically, the delegate's assessment of the applicant's credibility and the objective reasonableness of their fear was found to be deficient. The Court held that this failure constituted a jurisdictional error, rendering the decision to refuse the visa unlawful. The Court quashed the decision of the Minister.