Property Works Group Pty Ltd ACN 613 232 063 v Stevenson

The appeal before the court involved Property Works Group Pty Ltd against Stevenson. The primary dispute centred on the procedural fairness of a tribunal hearing, specifically whether the tribunal's acceptance of untested evidence and subsequent conduct during the hearing constituted a denial of procedural fairness. The case was heard in the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Appeal Panel.

The legal issues the court needed to address included whether the tribunal's acceptance of untested evidence by one party, followed by the introduction of new evidence during the hearing without affording the other party an opportunity to respond, constituted a procedural error. The court also had to determine if such conduct amounted to a denial of procedural fairness and, if so, whether this warranted the granting of leave to appeal and the setting aside of the tribunal's decision.

In its reasoning, the court found that the tribunal's handling of the evidence, particularly the acceptance of new evidence without allowing the opposing party to respond, did indeed constitute a procedural error. This conduct was deemed to have denied procedural fairness to the appellant, warranting the grant of leave to appeal. The court further held that the procedural unfairness was significant enough to warrant the setting aside of the tribunal's decision and the remitting of the matter to the tribunal for a rehearing by a different tribunal member. The court also stipulated that any evidence the parties wished to rely upon at the rehearing must be filed and served at least two weeks prior to the hearing.

The final orders included granting leave to appeal, allowing the appeal, setting aside the tribunal's order dated 18 October 2023, and remitting the matter to the tribunal for rehearing according to law. Additionally, the court mandated that the parties file and serve any evidence they intended to rely on at the rehearing no later than two weeks prior to the hearing.