Trustee for The MTGI Trust v Johnston

The case of Trustee for The MTGI Trust v Johnston concerns an application for relief under section 39B of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth) against a Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission. The dispute arose from two decisions of the Commission which refused permission to appeal a decision that dismissed an application by the respondent, Mr Johnston, for unfair dismissal. The primary legal issue before the court was whether the Commission's decisions were affected by a jurisdictional error.

The court considered whether Mr Johnston was entitled to personal/carer’s leave under section 97 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). The Fair Work Commission had previously held that Mr Johnston was entitled to take leave to care for his family due to an unexpected emergency, specifically the premature birth of his child and his wife's hospitalisation. The employer, MTGI, argued that Mr Johnston's request for leave was not valid as there is no legal entitlement to paid parental leave in Australia. The court examined the statutory provisions and found that Mr Johnston complied with the notice requirements under section 107 of the Act and provided evidence that his leave was taken for a reason specified in section 97.

The court found that the Fair Work Commission did not make a jurisdictional error in its decisions. It determined that Mr Johnston's actions did not indicate an intention to abandon his employment and that MTGI initiated the termination of the employment relationship. The court held that the Commission's decisions were sound and did not contain any jurisdictional errors.

The final orders of the court were to dismiss the application, and to set timelines for any application for costs, the submissions in response, and any submissions in reply, all limited to five pages.