Qantas Airways Limited v Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association

Qantas Airways Limited, a major Australian airline, sought an extension of time to appeal a decision of the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission, which had ruled against it in a dispute with the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA), a trade union representing aircraft engineers. The dispute centred around the interpretation and application of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) in relation to a bargaining impasse. The applicants sought the extension and leave to appeal to the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia.

The legal issues that the court needed to address were whether the applicants had provided a sufficient explanation for the delay in applying for leave to appeal and whether the appeal had a reasonable chance of success. The applicants argued that the delay was due to their solicitors' failure to properly communicate the outcome of the Full Bench decision and that the appeal had merit because the Full Bench had erred in its interpretation of the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act.

The court found that the applicants had provided a satisfactory explanation for the delay and that there was a reasonable chance that the appeal would be successful. The court held that the Full Bench had erred in its interpretation of the Fair Work Act by not considering the proper bargaining obligations of the parties and by not adequately addressing the impact of the dispute on the national economy. The court granted the applicants an extension of time to apply for leave to appeal, allowed the appeal, and specified the deadline for filing and serving a Notice of Appeal.

The orders of the court were that the applicants be granted an extension of time to apply for leave to appeal to 15 April 2011, that the applicants be given leave to appeal, and that the applicants file and serve a Notice of Appeal no later than 18 April 2011.