Wilson and Secretary, Department of Education

The applicant, Wilson, sought an extension of time from the Administrative Appeals Tribunal to lodge an application for review of a decision made by the Secretary, Department of Education. The Tribunal, constituted by Senior Member R Cameron, was asked to determine whether to grant this extension.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it should exercise its discretion under section 29(7) of the *Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975* to grant an extension of time for the lodging of the application for review. This required the Tribunal to consider the prospects of success of the substantive application for review.

The Tribunal acknowledged sympathy for the applicant's situation, noting that he appeared to have potential causes of action in breach of contract, misleading and deceptive conduct, and unconscionable conduct under the Australian Consumer Law. However, the Tribunal concluded that these potential causes of action were not matters that could be heard or determined by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. Consequently, the Tribunal found that the application for review lacked reasonable prospects of success before it and therefore refused the application for an extension of time.