The Queen v Khazaal

The Queen (appellant) appealed to the High Court of Australia against a decision of the Federal Court of Australia concerning the validity of a notice issued under s 50 of the *Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Act 1979* (Cth) (ASIO Act). The notice required Mr Khazaal (respondent) to attend a questioning and provide information relevant to a security intelligence operation. Mr Khazaal challenged the validity of the notice, arguing that the ASIO Director-General had not formed the requisite belief that the questioning was necessary for the purpose of obtaining security intelligence.

The High Court was required to determine whether the Director-General's belief, as evidenced by the notice itself, was sufficient to satisfy the requirements of s 50(1) of the ASIO Act, or whether extrinsic evidence was required to demonstrate the formation of that belief. Specifically, the Court considered the nature of the belief required by the provision and the extent to which the Court could review the subjective belief of the Director-General.

The Court held that the Director-General's belief, as stated in the notice, was sufficient to establish the jurisdictional fact required by s 50(1) of the ASIO Act. The Court reasoned that the provision did not require proof of the objective reasonableness of the belief, nor did it contemplate an inquiry into the subjective state of mind of the Director-General beyond what was evident from the notice itself. The Court applied the principle that where a statute requires a subjective belief as a condition precedent to the exercise of a power, the existence of that belief, as evidenced by the formal act of exercising the power, is generally sufficient.

The appeal was allowed, and the orders of the Federal Court were set aside.