Review of the Judicial Review Act 2000 (Tas)

This paper evaluates Tasmania’s current laws governing the review of administrative decisions, and seeks community input on this topic. It is the first comprehensive review of the Act since it was introduced 18 years ago. The Act covers the laws relating to when individual citizens may challenge the lawfulness of government action. There are concerns that the Act does not achieve its intended purpose of providing the public with a clear and simple means of seeking a review of government decisions. The Institute’s evaluation of the law provides a unique opportunity to address these perceived inadequacies and potentially ensure that this vital process is best serving Tasmanians. The TLRI review of the Act will address a wide range of key topics, including the form that procedure for challenging government decisions should take, the jurisdiction of the courts, the types of decisions that should be reviewable, and the scope of that review. It will examine the transfer of government power to private and not-for-profit organisations, as it pertains to the making of legally binding administrative decisions.