Walters v Drummond

In the matter of Walters v Drummond, the applicant sought judicial review of an investigation report prepared by the third and fourth respondents (the "BDO Report") and decisions made by the first respondent on behalf of the second respondent, including a decision to suspend the applicant from duty. The respondents applied to have the proceeding dismissed on the ground that the relevant decision was not a "decision" to which the Judicial Review Act 1991 (Qld) ("JRA") applied. The primary issue before the court was whether the BDO Report constituted a decision under an enactment for the purposes of the JRA. The court considered the relevant provisions of the JRA and relevant case law to determine whether the BDO Report qualified as a decision. The court found that the BDO Report did not constitute a decision under an enactment for the purposes of the JRA as it did not confer, alter or otherwise affect legal rights or obligations.

The court dismissed the respondents' applications to have the proceeding dismissed and ordered that the time for filing the application for a statutory order for review be extended to 21 December 2018. The court also ordered that the respondents pay the applicant's costs of and incidental to the applications filed on 11 March 2019 to be assessed on the standard basis.