SZRTP v Minister for Immigration

The applicant, SZRTP, sought judicial review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration to refuse to grant a protection visa. The dispute concerned the Minister's assessment of whether SZRTP would be a person to whom Australia has protection obligations under the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). The matter came before Judge Nicholls of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the Minister's decision was affected by jurisdictional error. Specifically, the Court was required to determine if the delegate of the Minister had failed to consider relevant considerations or had taken into account irrelevant considerations when assessing SZRTP's claims for protection, thereby vitiating the decision-making process.

Judge Nicholls found that the delegate had failed to properly consider the applicant's evidence regarding past persecution and the real chance of future persecution. The Court reasoned that a failure to engage with significant aspects of the applicant's evidence, particularly concerning the credibility of their claims and the specific circumstances of their fear, amounted to a failure to exercise the power conferred by the *Migration Act* according to law. The legal principle applied was that a decision-maker must genuinely consider all relevant evidence and material before them when making a determination under the Act.

The Court ordered that the decision of the Minister be set aside and remitted to the Minister for redetermination according to law.