Morrow and Registrar of Marriage Celebrants

This matter concerned an appeal by Mr Julian Morrow against the cancellation of his registration as a marriage celebrant by the Registrar of Marriage Celebrants. Mr Morrow had failed to pay his annual registration charge by the due date in 2018 due to admitted administrative errors. The Registrar was mandated by section 39FB of the *Marriage Act 1961* (Cth) to cancel registration upon non-payment, though the Registrar retained discretion regarding the timing of the de-registration notice. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal heard the appeal, considering the Act as it stood prior to significant amendments in 2018.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was the scope of the Registrar's discretion under section 39FB of the *Marriage Act 1961* (Cth) concerning the timing of a notice of de-registration for non-payment of the celebrant registration charge. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine whether the Registrar had adequately exercised this discretion in issuing the notice to Mr Morrow, given the circumstances of his non-payment. The Tribunal also considered the requirements for the notice of liability for the registration charge as stipulated by section 39FA and regulation 44 of the *Marriage Regulations 2017* (Cth).

The Tribunal reasoned that while the Registrar had no discretion not to cancel registration for non-payment, there was a wide discretion regarding the timing of the de-registration notice. The Registrar was required to send a notice under section 39FB unless there were specific circumstances, such as an ongoing application for exemption, that warranted delaying the notice. In Mr Morrow's case, the Tribunal found that the Registrar had not fully exercised this discretion, particularly in light of the short timeframe between the payment due date and the effective de-registration date. The Tribunal noted that the legislation, as it stood at the time, did not mandate a specific period for the notice to take effect, beyond stating it must be at least seven days after the notice is sent.

The Tribunal varied the decision under review. It ordered that the Registrar issue Mr Morrow with a notice under section 39FB of the Act on the eighth business day after the publication of the Tribunal's decision, with the de-registration to take effect 21 days thereafter. The Tribunal also suggested that the Registrar consider adopting a policy or practice, potentially including SMS notifications or a formalised 21-day rule, to prevent similar situations in the future.