Stantin Partners Pty Ltd and Tax Practitioners Board

Stantin Partners Pty Ltd and another sought a stay of decisions made by the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) to terminate their tax agent registrations and impose two-year bans. The applications for a stay were heard by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The core of the dispute concerned whether the applicants should be permitted to continue operating as registered tax agents, or at least to wind down their existing client base, pending the determination of their substantive applications for review of the TPB's decisions.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether to grant a conditional stay of the TPB's termination and banning decisions. In considering this, the Tribunal had to assess the relevant factors for granting a stay, including the prospects of success of the substantive review applications, the consequences for the applicants if a stay were not granted (specifically, whether their applications would be rendered nugatory), and the public interest considerations. The Tribunal also had to consider the consequences for the TPB in carrying out its statutory functions if a stay were granted.

The Tribunal reasoned that a stay was warranted given the potential for the substantive applications to be rendered nugatory if the applicants were immediately prevented from operating. It applied the principles governing the grant of stays in administrative review proceedings, balancing the interests of the applicants against the public interest and the functions of the TPB. The Tribunal granted the stay applications on specific conditions, including a prohibition on taking on new clients and a requirement for the applicants to notify their existing clients and employees in writing of the TPB's administrative action and the ongoing proceedings before the Tribunal. Applications for confidentiality were refused as they were inconsistent with the conditions imposed on the stay.