The Attorney-General for the State of Victoria v Deborah Glass (in Her Capacity as Ombudsman for the State of Victoria) and the President of the Legislative Council

In the case of The Attorney-General for the State of Victoria v Deborah Glass (in Her Capacity as Ombudsman for the State of Victoria) and the President of the Legislative Council, the Supreme Court of Victoria was called upon to determine the extent of the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction in relation to a matter referred by the Legislative Council. The central dispute hinged on whether the Ombudsman had the authority to investigate a matter referred by the Legislative Council under section 16 of the Ombudsman Act 1973. The Attorney-General argued that the Ombudsman's jurisdiction was limited and did not encompass the investigation of the referred matter.

The legal issues before the Court involved the interpretation of the phrase 'any matter' in section 16 of the Ombudsman Act 1973, and whether this phrase meant any matter within the Ombudsman's existing functions and jurisdiction. The Court had to consider the statutory text, context, and purpose of the enactment, as well as the broader statutory scheme. It was necessary to assess how section 16 interacted with other sections of the Ombudsman Act and related statutes such as the Freedom of Information Act 1982, the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission Act 2011, and the Protected Disclosure Act 2012.

The Supreme Court found that the phrase 'any matter' in section 16 of the Ombudsman Act 1973 did not limit the Ombudsman's jurisdiction to matters already within their functions and jurisdiction. Instead, it was interpreted broadly to include any matter that the Ombudsman could investigate, even if it was not explicitly covered by other sections of the Act. This interpretation aligned with the purpose of the Ombudsman Act, which was to provide a mechanism for the investigation of administrative action. Consequently, the Court held that the Ombudsman had the jurisdiction to investigate the matter referred by the Legislative Council.