Mongan v Woodward

In the Federal Court of Australia, Mr Mongan sought to restrain Ms Godwin, as delegate of the CEO of the Australian Customs Service (ACS), and Mr Woodward, as CEO, from imposing the sanction of termination of employment on him under the Public Service Act 1999 (Cth). The basis of Mr Mongan's application was a reasonable apprehension of bias in the decision-making process regarding the sanction. Mr Mongan did not contest that he had breached the APS Code of Conduct but argued that the decision-making process was tainted by bias.

The central legal issue before the court was whether there was a reasonable apprehension of bias on the part of Ms Godwin and Mr Woodward in the decision to terminate Mr Mongan's employment. The court considered whether the views expressed by Mr Drury, the Deputy CEO, influenced Ms Godwin's decision-making process, potentially compromising her impartiality. The court also had to determine if the apprehension of bias extended to all officers of the ACS, including Mr Woodward.

The court found that while there was no disagreement on the principles of bias, the apprehension of bias in Ms Godwin was not substantiated. The court noted that Ms Godwin was independent in her decision-making and was not influenced by Mr Drury’s views. The court found that Ms Godwin's position and responsibilities in the ACS were distinct from Mr Drury's, and she had no subordinate relationship with him. Additionally, the court held that Mr Woodward’s involvement was not sufficient to taint the decision-making process. Consequently, the application was dismissed with the second applicant, Mr Woodward, agreeing to not participate further in the matter.

The final orders of the court were that the application be dismissed upon the second applicant's undertaking not to participate further in the matter, and that costs be reserved.