Western Australian Amalgamated Society of Railway Employés Union of Workers v Commissioner of Railways for Western Australia

The High Court of Australia considered an application for special leave to appeal concerning a dispute between the Western Australian Amalgamated Society of Railway Employés Union of Workers and the Commissioner of Railways for Western Australia. The core of the disagreement involved the Commissioner's refusal to deal with certain matters brought before him by the Union, despite the hearing of these matters still being in progress.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether a writ of mandamus should be granted to compel the Commissioner to hear and determine the matters in dispute. This required the Court to examine the scope and application of sections 107 to 109 of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1902 (W.A.), which governed the powers and duties of the Commissioner in such circumstances.

The Court's reasoning focused on the nature of the writ of mandamus and its availability in industrial disputes. It was held that mandamus is an extraordinary remedy that lies to compel a public official to perform a public duty which they have refused to perform. However, the Court found that the Commissioner had not definitively refused to deal with the matters, as the hearing was still ongoing. Therefore, the conditions for granting a writ of mandamus were not met. Special leave to appeal was refused.