Tipakalippa v National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (No 2) [2022] FCA 1121

Federal Court of Australia

Tipakalippa v National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (No 2) [2022] FCA 1121 File number: VID 306 of 2022

Judgment of: BROMBERG J

Date of judgment: 21 September 2022

Catchwords: ADMINISTRATIVE LAW – Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977 (Cth) – s 39B of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth) – judicial review of decision of Regulator to accept an environment plan under the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage (Environment) Regulations 2009 (Cth) – where a precondition of the valid acceptance of the environment plan is that the Regulator be reasonably satisfied that the plan meets the criteria specified in the Regulations including the criteria requiring the proponent of the plan to consult with each person whose functions, interests or activities may be affected by the activities to be conducted pursuant to the environment plan ("relevant persons") – where applicant claims that he and other traditional owners of the Tiwi Islands were relevant persons and not consulted – whether the Regulator was lawfully satisfied that the environment plan met the criteria specified in the Regulations – applicable principles as to reasonable satisfaction as a jurisdictional precondition discussed – whether the Regulator performed the task it was required by the Regulations to perform of considering whether the environment plan demonstrated that each relevant person was consulted as required by the Regulations – whether insufficient information before the Regulator to have enabled the performance of that task – whether in the purported performance of that task the Regulator failed to consider material it was bound to consider – whether non-compliance, as an objective fact, with the consultation criteria in the Regulations could engage s 5(1)(b) of the ADJR Act or constitute a mistake of fact by the Regulator – principles relating to the admissibility of evidence on a judicial review application discussed – Regulator's decision set aside