Minister for Mineral Resources v Brantag Pty Limited

The Minister for Mineral Resources appealed to the New South Wales Court of Appeal against a decision of the Supreme Court of New South Wales concerning the validity of a mining lease granted to Brantag Pty Limited. The dispute centred on whether the Minister had properly exercised his discretion in granting the lease, notwithstanding objections raised by Brantag.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the Minister had failed to take into account relevant considerations or taken into account irrelevant considerations when granting the mining lease. Specifically, the court had to consider whether the Minister's decision was vitiated by a failure to afford Brantag procedural fairness, particularly in relation to the consideration of objections lodged by Brantag against the proposed lease.

The Court of Appeal held that the Minister had a duty to consider all objections lodged by Brantag before granting the lease. It found that the Minister had failed to adequately consider Brantag's objections, particularly those relating to the potential impact of the mining operations on existing infrastructure and land use. The court applied the principles of administrative law, emphasizing that a decision-maker must genuinely consider all material put before them and that a failure to do so can render the decision invalid.

The appeal was allowed, and the Supreme Court's decision was set aside. The matter was remitted to the Minister for reconsideration according to law.