Windsor v Health Care Complaints Commission

This matter concerned an appeal to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales by a medical practitioner, Dr Windsor, against a decision of the Medical Council of New South Wales to suspend his registration. The Health Care Complaints Commission had made a complaint against Dr Windsor, and the Medical Council had directed him to undergo a psychiatric examination, which he refused. Following this refusal, the Medical Council suspended his registration, a decision later affirmed on internal review. Dr Windsor did not appeal this suspension to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal of New South Wales (NCAT). Instead, he appealed directly to the Court of Appeal, challenging the Medical Council's suspension.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the appeal to it was competent, given that Dr Windsor had not pursued an appeal to NCAT as provided for under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (NSW). Further issues arose concerning the jurisdiction of NCAT, including whether the Tribunal had erred in law, whether it had been affected by actual or apprehended bias, and whether it had failed to afford procedural fairness to Dr Windsor. The Court also considered whether leave to appeal interlocutory decisions of the Tribunal was required and had not been sought.

The Court held that the appeal to the Court of Appeal was incompetent. It reasoned that the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (NSW) provided a statutory right of appeal to NCAT from decisions of the Medical Council, and that this avenue had not been exhausted by Dr Windsor. The Court found that the appeal to the Court of Appeal was therefore premature and misconceived, as it sought to bypass the statutory appeal process. Consequently, the Court dismissed the appeal and the associated notice of motion, ordering Dr Windsor to pay the costs of the respondents.