Matter of an application by Walshe, J. for an inquiry into an election in Australia Railways Union [1987] FCA 256

24 GENERAL DISTRIBUTION NOT REQUIRED

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA ) )

NEW SOUTH WALES DISTRICT REGISTRY ) No. 32 of 1984 )

INDUSTRIAL DIVISION )

IN THE MATTER of an

application by JAMES WALSHE for an inquiry into an election for an office in the AUSTRALIAN RAILWAYS UNION

25 MAY, 1987

° ~/ REASONS FOR JUDGMENT a

Zor 1987 4

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA PRINCIPAL

REGISTRY -

James Walshe (the applicant) is a member of Australian Railways Union (the union) which is an organization of employees registered under the Conciliation & Arbitration Act 1904 (the Act). He applied for an inquiry under Part IX of the Act into alleged irregularities in or in connection with an election for the office of Assistant National Secretary of the union. The application was referred to the Court by the Industrial Registrar under sub-section 159(4)(a) of the Act, which sub-section provided that "thereupon an inquiry shall be deemed to have been

instituted".

The election was conducted under s. 170 of the Act by Mr. N. P. Kean, an officer of the Australian Electoral Commission, Sydney, who called for nominations in August

1984. Three candidates were nominated for the office of

Assistant National Secretary, including Mr. Roger Gavin

Jowett who was not a member of the union. The irregularity alleged in the application in its original form was, in essence, that Mr. Jowett was not eligible to stand as a

candidate in the election by reason of the fact that he was

not a member of the union.

The application was amended on 18 February 1985 so as

to raise two additional alleged irregularities. One was that Mr. Jowett's nomination was not valid because an amendment to rule 39 was not valid; it was said that this was by reason of a failure to comply with the existing rules as to the

procedure for making amendments to the rules.