Re Griffin; Ex parte Professional Radio and Electronics Institute of Australia

The applicant, the Professional Radio and Electronics Institute of Australia, sought a writ of prohibition against the respondent, Griffin, who was acting as a returning officer in an election for the Federal Council of the Institute. The dispute concerned the validity of certain nominations for election to the Federal Council, specifically whether the nominations of two individuals, Mr. A.E. Smith and Mr. J.R. Smith, were validly made. The applicant contended that these nominations were invalid because they were not accompanied by the required nomination fee.

The central legal issue before Brennan J was whether the nominations of Mr. A.E. Smith and Mr. J.R. Smith were validly made in accordance with the rules of the Professional Radio and Electronics Institute of Australia. This required the court to interpret Rule 10(1)(d) of the Institute's rules, which stipulated that a nomination must be accompanied by a nomination fee of 5 shillings. The court had to determine if the returning officer's acceptance of these nominations, despite the absence of the fee, was lawful.

Brennan J reasoned that the rules of an association, when properly made, have the force of law between the members. Rule 10(1)(d) was clear and unambiguous in its requirement for a nomination fee. The returning officer had no discretion to waive this requirement. Therefore, the nominations of Mr. A.E. Smith and Mr. J.R. Smith were invalid from the outset. The court found that the returning officer had acted in excess of his jurisdiction by accepting these nominations, and that a writ of prohibition was the appropriate remedy to prevent the continuation of an unlawful process.

A writ of prohibition was ordered to issue, directing the respondent, Griffin, to refrain from proceeding with the election based on the invalid nominations.