IQBAL v Minister for Immigration

In *Iqbal v Minister for Immigration*, the applicant, Mr. Iqbal, sought judicial review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration to refuse his application for a Protection visa. The dispute centred on whether the Minister's decision was affected by an error of law, specifically concerning the assessment of Mr. Iqbal's claims for protection. The matter came before Judge Riethmuller of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the delegate of the Minister had failed to properly consider and assess the applicant's claims for protection, particularly in light of the evidence presented regarding his fear of persecution. This involved determining whether the delegate had applied the correct legal test for assessing claims of persecution and whether the delegate's findings of fact were reasonably open on the evidence.

Judge Riethmuller found that the delegate had made an error of law by failing to adequately consider the applicant's subjective fear of persecution. The Court reasoned that the delegate had focused too narrowly on the objective likelihood of harm and had not given sufficient weight to the applicant's personal experiences and the credibility of his account. The legal principle applied was that a proper assessment of a protection visa claim requires a holistic consideration of both subjective fear and objective risk, with the subjective element being paramount if reasonably held.

The Court ordered that the decision of the Minister be set aside and remitted to the Minister for redetermination according to law.