Gabrielle Appleby, Lynsey Blayden, Chantal Bostock & Janina Boughey

In the final post for the Kerr Report series, which examines whether Australian administrative law is still fit for purpose 50 years after the Kerr Committee Report, we reflect on a number of key reforms required to ensure the performance and integrity of Australia’s administrative review system. …

Paul Daly

Before situating the Kerr Report in what I consider to be its historical context, let me begin with a quibble. The Kerr Report considered comparative materials in some detail. This must have taken considerable effort in days where information from the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand …

Geoffrey Watson SC

In the 1970s Australia was poised to move ahead of the world in allowing access to government information. Just before the federal election in 1972 the Australian Labor Party promised legislation for that purpose – but Mr Whitlam faced a hostile Senate and could not get the …

Brenda Tronson

In this post I provide an overview, from a barrister’s perspective, of the approach I am likely to take when asked for advice regarding a potential judicial review application in relation to a Commonwealth administrative decision. While the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977 (Cth) (ADJR Act) …

Anita Stuhmche

This series celebrates and analyses the ‘new administrative law’ as it has developed in Australia since the Kerr Committee’s report 50 years ago. The focus of this blog is the Commonwealth Ombudsman. My argument is that the institution is no longer fit for purpose. …

Yee-Fui Ng

The Kerr Committee’s vision for a new administrative justice system led to the ground-breaking introduction of the ‘new administrative law’ package in the 1970s, incorporating the establishment of a generalist administrative tribunal, statutory judicial review, the office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman, and later, in the 1980s, freedom of information …

Chantal Bostock

As noted by colleagues, this blog series celebrates 50 years since the publication of the Kerr Report, which brought about great changes in Australian administrative law. In this blog post, I am going to try a new approach and attempt Eleanor Porter’s ‘glad game’, focusing on Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) ...