Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church v NSW Department of Education

The case involved the Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church, who operated an authorised childcare provider in New South Wales, and the NSW Department of Education. The dispute centred on the issuance of a compliance notice under the Children (Education and Care Services) National Law 2010 (NSW). The Department issued the original compliance notice to the Church, alleging multiple breaches of the Act. The Church sought an internal review of this decision, which was conducted by a different delegate of the Department. The second delegate confirmed the original notice but with materially different particulars regarding the alleged breaches. The Church then sought internal review of the second notice, arguing that the issuance of the second notice amounted to a fresh exercise of statutory power rather than a confirmation of the previous exercise, and thus was amenable to internal review.

The legal issues the court had to address included whether the issuance of the second compliance notice, which contained materially different particulars, constituted a fresh exercise of statutory power or a confirmation of the original notice. Another issue was whether a fresh exercise of statutory power was amenable to internal review under the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977 (Cth). The Church argued that the second notice was a new decision, not a confirmation, and therefore subject to internal review. The Department contended that the second notice was a confirmation and not subject to review.

The court found that the issuance of the second compliance notice, with materially different particulars, amounted to a fresh exercise of statutory power rather than a confirmation of the previous notice. The court held that the second delegate effectively made a new decision, which was amenable to internal review. The court relied on the principle that a decision-maker must apply their mind to the decision-making process anew when issuing a new notice with different particulars. This meant that the second compliance notice was not merely a confirmation but a fresh exercise of statutory power, and thus subject to internal review under the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977 (Cth).

The final orders of the court were that the issuance of the second compliance notice was a fresh exercise of statutory power and amenable to internal review. The court directed that the second compliance notice be subject to internal review by a delegate of the Department other than the one who issued it. The Church was granted the right to seek an internal review of the second compliance notice.