Nawaz v Minister for Immigration

Nawaz (the applicant) sought judicial review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration (the respondent) to refuse to grant him a protection visa. The applicant, who is from Pakistan, claimed to fear persecution on the basis of his imputed political opinion and his membership of a particular social group. The delegate of the Minister had found that the applicant's claims were not credible and therefore did not engage Australia's non-refoulement obligations.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the delegate's adverse credibility findings were affected by jurisdictional error. Specifically, the Court had to determine if the delegate had failed to consider relevant evidence or had taken irrelevant considerations into account when assessing the applicant's claims. The applicant also argued that the delegate had failed to provide adequate reasons for the adverse credibility findings.

Judge Riley found that the delegate had failed to properly consider crucial evidence relating to the applicant's alleged political activities and the general security situation in Pakistan. The delegate's reasoning did not adequately explain why this evidence was not accepted as credible, nor did it engage with the applicant's specific assertions about the risks he faced. Consequently, the Court concluded that the delegate's decision was affected by jurisdictional error. The Court set aside the delegate's decision and remitted the application for a protection visa to the Minister for redetermination according to law.