SZSHG v Minister for Immigration

The applicant, SZSHG, sought judicial review of a decision by the Refugee Review Tribunal (the Tribunal) to refuse her application for a protection visa. The core of the dispute concerned allegations that the Tribunal's decision was affected by jurisdictional error.

The court was required to determine whether the Tribunal had failed to act fairly and justly, exhibited bias, made incorrect findings of fact, failed to comply with section 424A of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), and whether the applicant was denied a real and meaningful hearing.

Judge Cameron found that the Tribunal had indeed committed jurisdictional error. The Tribunal's failure to provide the applicant with a copy of a crucial adverse document, as required by section 424A of the *Migration Act*, and its subsequent reliance on that document without affording the applicant a proper opportunity to respond, meant that the applicant was not accorded procedural fairness. This failure to comply with a statutory obligation went to the root of the Tribunal's decision-making process.

Consequently, the Tribunal's decision was set aside.