Rana v Deakin University

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FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Rana v Deakin University [2013] FCA 59

Citation: Rana v Deakin University [2013] FCA 59
Parties: RANJIT SHAMSHER JUNG BAHADUR RANA v DEAKIN UNIVERSITY
File number: SAD 169 of 2012
Judge: MANSFIELD J
Date of judgment: 7 February 2013
Date of hearing: 11 October 2012
Place: Adelaide
Division: GENERAL DIVISION
Category: No catchwords
Number of paragraphs: 61
Counsel for the Applicant: The applicant appeared in person
Counsel for the Respondent: S Cole
Solicitor for the Respondent: Minter Ellison

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

SOUTH AUSTRALIA DISTRICT REGISTRY

GENERAL DIVISION

SAD 169 of 2012

BETWEEN:

RANJIT SHAMSHER JUNG BAHADUR RANA
Applicant

AND:

DEAKIN UNIVERSITY
Respondent

JUDGE:

MANSFIELD J

DATE OF ORDER:

7 FEBRUARY 2013

WHERE MADE:

ADELAIDE

THE COURT ORDERS THAT:

1.The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.

2.The applicant pay the respondent’s costs.  

Note:Entry of orders is dealt with in Rule 39.32 of the Federal Court Rules 2011


IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

SOUTH AUSTRALIA DISTRICT REGISTRY

GENERAL DIVISION

SAD 169 of 2012

BETWEEN:

RANJIT SHAMSHER JUNG BAHADUR RANA
Applicant

AND:

DEAKIN UNIVERSITY
Respondent

JUDGE:

MANSFIELD J

DATE:

7 FEBRUARY 2013

PLACE:

ADELAIDE

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

INTRODUCTION

  1. Mr Rana has applied for leave to appeal from a decision of Burchardt FM given on 20 July 2012: Rana v Deakin University [2012] FMCA 575. The Federal Magistrate summarily dismissed Mr Rana’s application against the respondent Deakin University pursuant to s 17A of the Federal Magistrates Act 1999 (Cth) (the FM Act) and declared Mr Rana a vexatious litigant pursuant to r 13.11 of the Federal Magistrates Court Rules 2001 (Cth) (the FMC Rules), so that Mr Rana may not institute further proceedings in the Federal Magistrates Court without leave, and any existing proceedings in that court may not be continued by him without leave.

  2. As the appeal is against an interlocutory judgment, Mr Rana requires leave to appeal: Federal Court of Australia Act 1976 s 24(1A), Vatarescu v Commonwealth of Australia for the Agency of Centrelink(No 2) [2012] FCA 165. He has sought leave to appeal from those orders.

  3. It is clear that the test to be applied on an application for leave to appeal is whether, in all the circumstances, the decision is attended with sufficient doubt to warrant its being reconsidered by the appeal court, and whether substantial injustice would result if leave were refused, supposing the decision to be wrong: Décor Corporation Pty Ltd v Dart Industries Inc (1991) 33 FCR 397; Seven Network Ltd v News Ltd (2005) 144 FCR 379; Cabcharge Australia Ltd v Australian Competition and Consumer Commission [2010] FCAFC 111. Mr Rana handed up at the hearing a written document called “The Nature of the Appeal”; it did not in any real way seek to dispute those well settled principles.

    THE FEDERAL MAGISTRATE’S DECISION

  4. The Federal Magistrate referred to the extensive and “somewhat scattergun” material presented by Mr Rana.

  5. His Honour identified the cause of action as arising initially from a…

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Details
Case
[2013] FCA 59
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Rana v Deakin University involved a dispute between Mr Rana and Deakin University. Mr Rana alleged that he was marked down in assessments in two study units because of his race and disability, and that the Australian Human Rights Commission’s delegate erred in terminating his complaint. The Federal Magistrates Court was tasked with deciding the legal issues arising from Mr Rana's application for leave to appeal the decision of the Federal Magistrate. The court had to determine whether the decision of the Federal Magistrate was attended with sufficient doubt to warrant reconsideration by the appeal court, and whether substantial injustice would result if leave were refused.

The court reviewed the principles governing leave to appeal, and considered the evidence presented by Mr Rana. The Federal Magistrate had concluded that Mr Rana's complaint lacked substance, as there was little information to support the claim that his race or disability were factors in his assessments. The court found that the Federal Magistrate had carefully considered the evidence and that Mr Rana's allegations were not supported by the material he relied upon. The court held that the decision of the Federal Magistrate was not attended with sufficient doubt to warrant reconsideration by the appeal court, and that there would be no substantial injustice if leave to appeal were refused.

The court dismissed Mr Rana's application for leave to appeal, and ordered that he pay Deakin University’s costs of the application, to be taxed on an indemnity basis if not agreed. The court found that the Federal Magistrate’s decision was correct, and that Mr Rana's complaint lacked substance. The court held that there was no basis for Mr Rana to appeal the decision of the Federal Magistrate, and that the decision should be upheld.

Orders

Orders of the court

Full text does not contain this section.

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

It is clear that the test to be applied on an application for leave to appeal is whether, in all the circumstances, the decision is attended with sufficient doubt to warrant its being reconsidered by the appeal court, and whether substantial injustice would result if leave were refused, supposing the decision to be wrong: Décor Corporation Pty Ltd v Dart Industries Inc (1991) 33 FCR 397; Seven Network Ltd v News Ltd (2005) 144 FCR 379; Cabcharge Australia Ltd v Australian Competition and Consumer Commission [2010] FCAFC 111. Mr Rana handed up at the hearing a written document called “The Nature of the Appeal”; it did not in any real way seek to dispute those well settled principles.THE FEDERAL MAGISTRATE’S DECISION The Federal Magistrate referred to the extensive and “somewhat scattergun” material presented by Mr Rana. His Honour identified the cause of action as arising initially from a complaint that Mr Rana had been marked down in assessments in a study unit MPE711 (Global Trade and Markets) because of his race or because of a disability. At a later point, Mr Rana extended his complaint to a failure to re-mark his work in the study unit MPK732 (Marketing Management). Mr Rana had undertaken those courses at Deakin University. Mr Rana is of Nepalese origin, and claimed to have a psychiatric disability and diabetes. He alleged to the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) that the conduct he complained of contravened unspecified sections of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth) (the RD Act) and the Disability Discrimination Act 2006 (Cth) (the DD Act). On 7 July 2011, the AHRC by a delegate of the Commissioner terminated the complaint under s 46PH(1) of the Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986 (Cth) as the delegate was satisfied that the complaint was lacking in substance. There was little information to support the claim, and the information from Deakin University was uncontradicted. It showed Deakin University accommodated his request not to participate in group assignments, had given him extensions of time to complete his assignments, and his assessments were marked and re-marked by two qualified assessors in accordance with the marketing criteria applicable to all students. There was no evidence to indicate his race or disabilities were factors in the assessments. In relation to the MPK732 unit, he had been permitted to sit a special exam to accommodate his disabilities, and the apparent error about when the time for a review of his assessment had expired was not prompted by any factor concerning his race or his disabilities. The Federal Magistrate also noted with some care the several instances where the material he presented to the Federal Magistrates Court extended to matters which had not been the subject of his complaint to AHRC. The principal feature of those extended allegations was that he had been wrongly accused of plagiarism, and marked accordingly, in relation to a separate course by reason of his race; he said the lecturer concerned was of Indian extraction and had picked on him because he was Nepalese. There were several additional matters which the Federal Magistrate noted, but dismissed as the assertions of Mr Rana were not supported by the material he relied upon, and indeed in some respects there was a “disconnect” between his affidavit making the assertions and the materials said to support them.

Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

Full text does not contain this section.