SZRTN v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2014] FCA 303

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

SZRTN v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2014] FCA 303 Citation: SZRTN v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2014] FCA 303

Appeal from: Confidential v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2013] AATA 818

Parties: SZRTN v MINISTER FOR IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION and ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS TRIBUNAL

File number: NSD 2551 of 2013

Judge: KATZMANN J

Date of judgment: 31 March 2014

Catchwords: MIGRATION – refusal of visa on character grounds under s 501 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) – whether exercise by Administrative Appeals Tribunal of its discretion to refuse to grant the visa miscarried – refusal by Tribunal to give weight to certain written statements where makers not called to give oral evidence – Ministerial Direction No 55 – application of paragraph 6.3(4) of Direction ADMINISTRATIVE LAW – jurisdictional error – whether denial of procedural fairness to give no weight to written statements – whether illogical or irrational to give no weight to the statements – whether Tribunal failed to take into account relevant considerations – whether Tribunal failed to take into account evidence of remorse – whether Tribunal ignored part of paragraph 6.3(4) of Ministerial Direction No 55 – whether Tribunal took into account irrelevant considerations – whether considerations not expressly mentioned in Direction are irrelevant – whether Tribunal failed to complete the exercise of its jurisdiction by failing to expressly weigh in the balance all relevant considerations or by failing to consider whether the other considerations carried more weight than any of the primary considerations