Rankine v Queensland College of Teachers

[2023] QCAT 180

QUEENSLAND CIVIL AND
ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL

CITATION:

RANKINE V QUEENSLAND COLLEGE OF TEACHERS [2023] QCAT 180

PARTIES:

MELISSA SERENA RANKINE 

(applicant)

v

QUEENSLAND COLLEGE OF TEACHERS

(respondent)

APPLICATION NO/S:

OCR299-22

MATTER TYPE:

Occupational regulation matters

DELIVERED ON:

19 January 2023

HEARING DATE:

On the papers

HEARD AT:

Brisbane

DECISION OF:

Senior Member Aughterson

ORDERS:

1. The application to review a decision filed on 3 November 2022 is dismissed pursuant to section 47 of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009 (Qld).

CATCHWORDS:

EDUCATION – EDUCATORS – REGISTRATION – where teacher granted provisional rather than full registration – where application for extension of time to apply for internal review refused – whether Tribunal has jurisdiction to conduct external review – whether application to review a decision should be dismissed

Education (Queensland College of Teachers) Act 2005 (Qld), s 21, s 208A, s 209, s 210, s 210B, s 211, s 212,
s 213, s 215

Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009 (Qld), s 20, s 47

APPEARANCES & REPRESENTATION: This matter was heard and determined on the papers pursuant to s 32 of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009 (Qld)

REASONS FOR DECISION

1. On 3 November 2022, the applicant filed an application to review a decision of the Queensland College of Teachers (‘the College’) to grant her provisional rather than full registration as a teacher. There is a question of the jurisdiction of the Tribunal to review that decision. On 17 November 2022, directions were issued requiring the parties to file any submissions in relation to that question.

2. On 1 September 2021, the applicant made application for full registration with the College. On 3 August 2022, the College granted the applicant provisional registration and on that day gave her an ‘information notice’ of that decision pursuant to s 21(2)(b) of the Education (Queensland College of Teachers) Act 2005 (Qld) (‘the Act’). On 19 October 2022, the applicant sought clarification in relation to the decision, to which the College provided a response on 24 October 2022. On 24 October 2022, the applicant made application for internal review of the decision and sought an extension of time to file that application.

3. By s 210(1) of the Act, an application for internal review must be made within 28 days after the person is given an information notice about the original decision, though, by s 210(2) of the Act, the College may extend that time. On 1 November 2022, the College refused to grant an extension of time.

4. Chapter 8 Part 1 of the Act deals with internal reviews. That part incorporates ss 208A to 213. Section 209 is headed ‘Review process for particular decisions starts with internal review’ and provides, at s 209(1), that a person who is given an information notice for an original decision may apply for a review of the decision. Section 209(3) then provides:

   The review must be, in the first instance, by way of an application for internal review under section 210.

5. As noted above, s 210 of the Act deals with the time for making the application for internal review, while s 211 sets out the processes for the conduct of the review and the powers of the review committee. By s 211(5), the College is not required to follow the review committee’s recommendation. However, s 212(2) provides:

   After considering the review committee’s recommendation, the college must make a further decision (also a review decision) to do any of the following—

   (a) confirm the original decision;

   (b) amend the original decision;

   (c) substitute another decision for the original decision

6. Section 213 then provides, in part:

   (1)   The relevant decision maker for a review decision must, as soon as practicable, give the applicant notice (the review notice) of the review decision.

   (2) If the review decision is not the decision sought by the applicant, the relevant decision maker must give the applicant a review notice that complies with the QCAT Act, section 157(2).

7. The applicant submits that s 215 of the Act allows for external review where a person is dissatisfied with the ‘review’, as distinct from being dissatisfied with the ‘review decision’. In relation to external review to the Tribunal, s 215 of the Act provides:

   A person who has applied for a review of an original decision under part 1 and is dissatisfied with the review may apply to QCAT for a review of the original decision.

8. By s 208A of the Act, a ‘review decision’ means either a decision of the review committee under s 210B(4) or a decision of the College under s 212(1). The latter is also a ‘review decision’: see s 212(2) of the Act.

9. In the present case, no review has been undertaken and no ‘review decision’ has been made. The application for an extension of time to conduct the review was refused. It is evident that s 215 of the Act, in allowing for external review, anticipates that an internal ‘review decision’ has been made. Section 212(3) of the Act provides:

   For a review under part 2 [external review]—

   (a)   if the review decision confirms the original decision—the original decision is taken to be the review decision; or

   (b)   if the review decision amends the original decision—the original decision as amended is taken to be the review decision; or

   (c)   if the review decision substitutes another decision for the original decision—the substituted decision is taken to be the review decision.

10. Also, by s 213 of the Act, noted at [6] above, the requirement to give the applicant a review notice that complies with s 157(2) of the QCAT Act arises only where there has been a ‘review decision’ and not where, as here, there has been a refusal of an extension of time to make application for internal review.

11. Accordingly, as submitted by the College, as there was no ‘review decision’ as defined in s 208A of the Act, external review before the Tribunal is not available.

12. While any refusal of an extension of time might give rise to an application for judicial review before the Supreme Court, the Tribunal conducts a merits review of a ‘reviewable decision’: s 20(2) of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009 (Qld) (‘the QCAT Act’). In the present case, no reviewable decision has been made. An internal review, which would give rise to a ‘reviewable decision’, has not commenced.

13. Accordingly, the application to review a decision filed on 3 November 2022 is dismissed pursuant to s 47 of the QCAT Act.