Hot Holdings Pty Ltd v Creasy [2002] HCA 51

HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

GLEESON CJ,

GAUDRON, McHUGH, GUMMOW, KIRBY, HAYNE AND CALLINAN JJ

HOT HOLDINGS PTY LTD APPELLANT

AND

MARK GARETH CREASY & ORS RESPONDENTS

Hot Holdings Pty Ltd v Creasy [2002] HCA 51

14 November 2002

P58/2001

ORDER

1. Appeal allowed. 2. Set aside the whole of the order made by the Full Court of the Supreme Court of Western Australia on 4 August 2000 dealing with the appeal to that Court and in place thereof order that the appeal to that Court is dismissed with costs. 3. Set aside paragraphs 2, 3, 4 and 5 of the order made by the Full Court on 4 August 2000 dealing with the return of the order nisi and in place thereof order that: 4. the order nisi granted by Heenan J on 23 June 1999 is discharged; 5. the applicants in the Full Court pay the respondents' costs in that Court. 6. The first named first respondent pay the costs of the appellant and the second respondent of the appeal to this Court.

On appeal from the Supreme Court of Western Australia

Representation:

M J Buss QC with C G Colvin SC for the appellant (instructed by Lawton Gillon)

M J McCusker QC with C P Stevenson for the first named first respondent (instructed by Mallesons Stephen Jaques)

No appearance for the second and third named first respondents

G T W Tannin with J C Pritchard for the second respondent (instructed by Crown Solicitor's Office for the State of Western Australia)

Notice: This copy of the Court's Reasons for Judgment is subject to formal revision prior to publication in the Commonwealth Law Reports.

CATCHWORDS

Hot Holdings Pty Ltd v Creasy

Administrative law – Procedural fairness – Minister of Crown – Apprehension of bias – Ministerial decision pursuant to Statute – Content of duty of procedural fairness in administrative decision-making – Pecuniary interest of an officer in Minister's Department – Whether apprehension of bias on account of pecuniary interest – Whether fact that final decision made by Minister personally cures appearance of bias in officials – Relevance of Codes of official conduct – Whether certiorari should lie to quash Minister's decision.