Johnston & Ors v Carroll (Commissioner of the Queensland Police Service) & Anor; Witthahn & Ors v Wakefield (Chief Executive of Hospital and Health Services and Director General of Queensland Health); Sutton & Ors...

The matter before the court involved multiple applicants, including police officers, staff members of the Queensland Police Service, and hospital and health service employees, who sought judicial review of directions mandating COVID-19 vaccinations. These directions were issued by the Commissioner of the Queensland Police Service and the Chief Executive of Hospital and Health Services, among others. The applicants argued that these directions were unlawful or invalid, and sought declarations to that effect, as well as orders to quash and set aside the directions.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the directions for mandatory vaccination against COVID-19 were valid and lawful. The applicants contended that the directions exceeded the powers conferred by the relevant legislation, particularly under the Human Rights Act 2019. They argued that the directions were not reasonably necessary to protect public health and safety, and that they infringed on their human rights in a manner not permitted by the Act.

The court found that the directions were indeed unlawful under section 58 of the Human Rights Act 2019. The court held that the directions were not reasonably necessary to achieve the objective of protecting public health and safety, and that they went beyond what was reasonably appropriate and adaptable to that legitimate aim. The court also found that the directions did not strike a fair balance between the rights of the applicants and the interests of the community. Consequently, the court granted the declarations sought by the applicants and restrained the Commissioner of Police from taking any steps to enforce the vaccination directions.