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Heather Healey v Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Victoria

Heather Healey v Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Victoria

Case [2018] VSCA 245 26 September 2018

Judicial Review

Natural Justice & Procedural Fairness

Legitimate Expectation

Proportionality

Administrative Law

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SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA

COURT OF APPEAL

S APCI 2018 0064

HEATHER HEALEY	Applicant
v
ROYAL SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS VICTORIA	Respondent

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JUDGES:	KYROU, NIALL and HARGRAVE JJA
WHERE HELD:	MELBOURNE
DATE OF HEARING:	31 August 2018
DATE OF JUDGMENT:	26 September 2018
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2018] VSCA 245
JUDGMENT APPEALED FROM:	Healey v RSPCA [2018] VSC 190 (Quigley J)

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JUDICIAL REVIEW – Instrument of delegation – Delegation to Chief Operating Officer of respondent – Whether only named individuals or holders of public offices can be delegates – Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 s 38(2).

JUDICIAL REVIEW – Instrument delegating authority to Chief Operating Officer of respondent authorised grant of written ‘approval’ to inspector to apply for search warrant – Authorisation instrument ‘allowed’ inspector to make application – Whether inspector properly authorised.

JUDICIAL REVIEW – Application for search warrants under ss 24G and 24K of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 – Whether affidavit in support satisfied preconditions for issue of warrants.

JUDICIAL REVIEW – Search warrants under ss 24G and 24K of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 – Whether warrants too wide – Whether s 24K warrant specified its object by reference to specific offence – Whether magistrate failed to consider terms of warrants – Appeal allowed.

JUDICIAL REVIEW – Inspector obliged to give owner of animal opportunity to arrange veterinary treatment before inspector arranged such treatment – Whether opportunity must be given to owner prior to application for search warrant authorising seizure of animals – Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 s 24C.

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Applicant	Mr G Nash QC with Mr P Lithgow	Maitland Lawyers
For the Respondent	Mr N De Young	Minter Ellison

KYROU JA
NIALL JA
HARGRAVE JA:

Introduction and summary

The applicant operates a domestic animal business breeding pedigree Chihuahuas and Tibetan Spaniels at her property in Longwood. The respondent — commonly referred to as the RSPCA — is a charitable organisation that has a role in the protection of animals under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 (‘Act’).

On 20 May 2016, Simon Primrose, an employee of the respondent who held the position of general inspector under the Act — known as a ‘POCTA inspector’ — applied to the Magistrates’ Court for two search warrants in respect of the applicant’s property. The application was made pursuant to the authorisation set out at [12] below which was issued by Jon McGregor, the Chief Operating Officer (‘COO’) of the respondent on 20 May 2016 (‘Authorisation’). The Authorisation, in turn, was issued pursuant to the instrument of delegation described at [13] below (‘Delegation’) which was issued by the Department Head of the Department of Environment and Primary Industries (‘Department Head’ and ‘Department’, respectively) on 8 December 2015.

The search warrants were issued on 20 May 2016. The first warrant, issued under s 24G of the Act (‘s 24G warrant’), authorised the seizure of dogs from the applicant’s property.[1]…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

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Details

AGLC: Heather Healey v Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Victoria [2018] VSCA 245
Case: [2018] VSCA 245
Decision Date: 26 September 2018

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of Heather Healey v Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Victoria, the applicant challenged the legality of search warrants issued by an inspector under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986. The applicant, Ms Healey, sought judicial review of the warrants, which were used to seize animals from her property. The court was required to determine several key legal issues, including the validity of the delegation of authority to the inspector, the adequacy of the affidavit in support of the warrants, and the scope and specificity of the warrants themselves.

The court first examined whether the instrument delegating authority to the Chief Operating Officer of the respondent was valid. It considered whether only named individuals or holders of public offices could be delegates under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 s 38(2). The court found that the instrument was valid, as it allowed the inspector to make an application for a search warrant. Next, the court assessed the sufficiency of the affidavit in support of the warrants, ensuring it satisfied the preconditions for the issue of warrants under the Act.

Further, the court scrutinised the warrants issued under sections 24G and 24K of the Act, determining whether they were too wide and whether the 24K warrant specified its object by reference to a specific offence. It also examined whether the magistrate failed to consider the terms of the warrants. The court concluded that the warrants were too wide, and the magistrate did not adequately consider their terms, leading to the conclusion that the warrants were invalid. Consequently, the court allowed the appeal, quashed the warrants, and ordered that the seized animals be returned to the applicant.

The court made an order for the return of the seized animals to the applicant and quashed the search warrants issued under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986. This decision highlights the importance of the proper delegation of authority, the adequacy of affidavits in support of search warrants, and the need for warrants to be specific and not overly broad in their scope.

Orders