Reimers v Health Care Complaints Commission

In *Reimers v Health Care Complaints Commission*, the applicant sought judicial review of a decision made by the Medical Tribunal eight years prior. The Health Care Complaints Commission (the Commission) sought summary dismissal of the application on the grounds of want of due despatch, arguing that the applicant had unduly delayed in commencing proceedings. The Commission also sought to set aside an earlier order made by a single judge of the Court of Appeal.

The central legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the applicant's eight-year delay in commencing judicial review proceedings was an unexplained or unjustified lapse of time, and whether this delay constituted a want of due despatch within the meaning of Rule 12.7 of the *Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005* (NSW). The Court was also required to consider whether, in the exercise of its discretion, it should refuse relief due to the delay and the potential prejudice to the Commission if the matter were remitted.

The Court of Appeal held that the phrase "prosecute the proceedings" in Rule 12.7 encompassed the commencement of proceedings, not merely their continuation. Applying this interpretation, the Court found that the applicant's eight-year delay was a significant want of due despatch. The Court further reasoned that, given the substantial delay and the absence of any adequate explanation or justification, it would be contrary to the public interest and prejudicial to the Commission to remit the matter for reconsideration. The Court also noted that the applicant had not demonstrated that the Medical Tribunal's findings of professional misconduct and impairment due to narcotic addiction were inconsistent or contained a manifest error of law.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal dismissed the applicant's summons for judicial review and ordered the applicant to pay the Commission's costs, excluding costs related to the Commission's motion. The Commission's motion was also dismissed, with no order as to costs.