Turner v Driver

In the Federal Court, Turner sought judicial review of a decision made by Driver, who was acting in an administrative capacity. Turner alleged that Driver had failed to observe procedural fairness in the decision-making process, and that there was an apprehension of bias on Driver's part. The central issue before the court was whether Turner had established grounds for the court to grant relief in the form of quashing the decision made by Driver. The court had to determine whether Driver had indeed failed to observe procedural fairness and if there was a real likelihood of bias that was not waived by Turner.

The court examined the nature and extent of procedural fairness required in the circumstances and whether Driver had observed it. The court also considered whether the apprehension of bias was justified and whether Turner had waived any such apprehension by failing to raise it in a timely manner. The court found that Driver had indeed failed to observe procedural fairness by not providing Turner with an opportunity to respond to certain evidence. However, the court was not convinced that there was a real likelihood of bias, noting that Turner had not raised any concerns about Driver's impartiality until after the decision had been made. The court held that Turner had effectively waived any apprehension of bias by not raising it in a timely fashion.

As a result of the court's findings, Turner's application for judicial review was dismissed. The court held that the failure to observe procedural fairness was not sufficient to vitiate the decision, and that there was no valid ground for the court to grant relief. The court ordered Turner to pay Driver's costs of the proceeding.