Rennie, G.A. v Australian Workers Union

In the Federal Court of Australia, Industrial Division, Gordon Andrew Rennie filed an application against the Australian Workers Union seeking an inquiry into the conduct of an election for the office of organiser. The application was based on two grounds: first, that two candidates were ineligible to stand, and second, that the voting instructions on the how-to-vote ticket were misleading. The court was required to determine whether there were reasonable grounds to warrant an inquiry into the election and, if so, whether an interim order should be granted to keep Mr. Rennie in office pending the inquiry.

The court found that there was a prima facie case that the two candidates were ineligible to stand for office, which warranted an inquiry. The court also considered the possibility that the voting instructions might have been misleading to some voters, though it was not a strong likelihood. The court ruled that there were reasonable grounds for the application under Section 219(b) of the Industrial Relations Act 1988, as the possibility of the election being affected was sufficient. The court scheduled the inquiry for June 1, 1990, at 3 pm. Regarding the interim order, the court concluded that there was not a high probability of the inquiry resulting in a successful outcome for Mr. Rennie, given his significant loss in the election. Therefore, the court refused the application for an interim order.

The Federal Court of Australia ruled that there were reasonable grounds to hold an inquiry into the election, scheduled for June 1, 1990, at 3 pm. The court refused to grant an interim order to keep Mr. Rennie in office pending the inquiry, as it did not find a high probability of a successful outcome for him.