Sun v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection

The case before the court is an appeal brought by Ms Sun against a decision of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia, which itself was reviewing a decision of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (the Tribunal). Ms Sun, a Chinese citizen, sought to appeal the Tribunal's decision to dismiss her review of a decision of the Minister's delegate to refuse her application for a Partner (Temporary) visa under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The court was required to determine whether the Federal Circuit Court judge erred in finding that the Tribunal had properly conducted its review of the delegate’s decision and whether the Tribunal had failed to take into account relevant considerations under reg 1.15A(2) of the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth). This involved considering the Tribunal’s obligations under s 368 of the Act and whether it was permissible to draw an inference that the Tribunal did not have regard to certain matters.

The court held that the Federal Circuit Court judge erred in finding that the Tribunal properly conducted its review of the delegate’s decision. The court found that the Tribunal did not consider all of the relevant matters that it was bound to consider when reviewing the delegate's decision. Specifically, the Tribunal failed to take into account the social aspects of Ms Sun's relationship with her husband, which included the opinion of friends and acquaintances about the nature of their relationship. The court emphasised that the Tribunal was required to give "proper, genuine and realistic" consideration to all relevant matters, and that each case must be evaluated according to its own particular circumstances. The court also noted that the importance of a particular matter will affect the nature and extent of the consideration it attracts, and that a matter of fundamental importance will require closer consideration.

The court further found that the Tribunal’s failure to consider all relevant matters constituted a jurisdictional error, and thus the Tribunal's decision should be quashed. The court set aside the orders of the Federal Circuit Court and issued a writ of certiorari to quash the Tribunal's decision. It also issued a writ of mandamus directing the Tribunal to rehear and determine Ms Sun's application for review according to law. The court also ordered the Minister to pay Ms Sun's costs of the application and the appeal.

In summary, the court found that the Tribunal did not properly consider all relevant matters in reviewing the delegate's decision, leading to a jurisdictional error. The court quashed the Tribunal's decision, directed the Tribunal to rehear Ms Sun's application, and ordered the Minister to pay costs.