s38 – Conduct of Public Authorities

Occupiers of Portion R25 of the Farm Mooiplaats 355 JR v Golden Thread Limited and Others (CCT 25/11) [2011] ZACC 35 (7 December 2011)

Obligation to consider alternatives to eviction into homelessness Occupiers of Portion R25 of the Farm Mooiplaats 355 JR v Golden Thread Limited and Others (CCT 25/11) [2011] ZACC 35 (7 December 2011) Summary In this case, if evicted, approximately 170 families would be made homeless. The South African Constitutional Court unanimously held that, before making [...]

City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality v Blue Moonlight Properties 39 (Pty) Ltd and Another (Lawyers for Human Rights as Amicus Curiae) Case No: CCT 37/11 [2011] ZACC 33 (1 December 2011)

City has constitutional obligation to provide emergency accommodation to vulnerable persons evicted by private landlord City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality v Blue Moonlight Properties 39 (Pty) Ltd and Another (Lawyers for Human Rights as Amicus Curiae) Case No: CCT 37/11 [2011] ZACC 33 (1 December 2011) Summary The South African Constitutional Court has held that [...]

R v Larson, 2011 BCCA 454 (10 November 2011)

Warrantless search of home by police justified exclusion of evidence from criminal proceedings R v Larson, 2011 BCCA 454 (10 November 2011) Summary In this case, the Court of Appeal for British Columbia overturned Mr Larson’s conviction for unlawful production of cannabis under s 7(1) of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, SC 1996, c [...]

Director of Housing v Sudi [2011] VSCA 266 (6 September 2011)

VCAT did not have human rights jurisdiction in public housing matter: Court of Appeal strikes “collateral” blow to Victorian Charter Director of Housing v Sudi [2011] VSCA 266 (6 September 2011) Summary The Victorian Court of Appeal has decided that VCAT, in an application for a possession order under the Residential Tenancies Act 1997, did [...]

P J B v Melbourne Health & Anor (Patrick’s case) [2011] VSC 327 (19 July 2011)

Charter Promotes and Protects Rights of Person with Disability P J B v Melbourne Health & Anor (Patrick’s case) [2011] VSC 327 (19 July 2011) Summary In this case, the Supreme Court of Victoria held that the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal had both failed to interpret law consistently with human rights and had itself [...]

DPP v KW [2011] VCC (2 May 2011)

Court supports Charter protection of privacy in police interviews DPP v KW [2011] VCC (2 May 2011) The County Court recently handed down a decision in relation to the use by Victoria Police of ‘pretext conversations’ to gather evidence. The matter involved an application by KW to have evidence of a recording of a phone [...]

Governing Body of the Juma Musjid Primary School & Others v Essay N.O. and Others (CCT 29/10) [2011] ZACC 13 (11 April 2011)

South African Constitutional Court Considers the Nature and Scope of the Right to Education Governing Body of the Juma Musjid Primary School & Others v Essay N.O. and Others (CCT 29/10) [2011] ZACC 13 (11 April 2011) Summary In this significant decision, the Constitutional Court of South Africa considered the nature and scope of the [...]

Hugh Glenister v President of the Republic of South Africa & Ors (CCT 48/10) [2011] ZACC 6 (17 March 2011)

State’s Obligation to Establish an Independent Anti-Corruption Body Hugh Glenister v President of the Republic of South Africa & Ors (CCT 48/10) [2011] ZACC 6 (17 March 2011) Summary The Constitutional Court of South Africa declared legislation which disbanded and replaced an anti-corruption body constitutionally invalid. Through a joint judgment by Moseneke DCJ and Cameron [...]

Giotopoulos v Director of Housing [2011] VSC 20 (7 February 2011)

Evictions and Human Rights Giotopoulos v Director of Housing [2011] VSC 20 (7 February 2011) Summary The Supreme Court refused leave to appeal a decision of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (the Tribunal) dismissing an application under section 232 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (the ‘Act’) for the creation of a tenancy. Section [...]

Caserta v Director of Public Transport [2011] VCAT 98 (27 January 2011)

VCAT Considers Disability Discrimination Under the Charter Caserta v Director of Public Transport [2011] VCAT 98 (27 January 2011) Summary The applicant sought a review of the decision of the Director of Transport (‘Director’) refusing to grant him an application for driver accreditation for a commercial passenger vehicle. The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (‘VCAT’) [...]

Director of Housing v KJ (Residential Tenancies) [2010] VCAT 2026 (16 December 2010)

Director of Housing v KJ (Residential Tenancies) [2010] VCAT 2026 (16 December 2010) A recent VCAT decision found that the Director of Housing (‘Director’) acted in accordance with its duties as a public authority pursuant to s 38(1) of the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic) in serving the respondent with a [...]

Director of Housing v TK [2010] VCAT 1839 (16 November 2010)

Director of Housing Considers Rights of Vulnerable Tenants Director of Housing v TK [2010] VCAT 1839 (16 November 2010) A recent VCAT decision has shown that public housing authorities are developing a more thoughtful and engaged model of decision making that gives proper consideration to the human rights of vulnerable tenants. Facts The Director of Housing [...]

Quinn v Overland [2010] FCA 799 (28 July 2010)

Application of the Charter to Public Sector Employment Decisions and Practices Quinn v Overland [2010] FCA 799 (28 July 2010) The Federal Court of Australia has found that there is a serious issue to be tried that s 20(3)(c) of the Public Administration Act 2004 (Vic) (‘the PA Act’) places a statutory duty on public [...]

Director of Housing v TK [2010] VCAT Application 2010/11921 (Unreported, 22 July 2010)

Tribunal has Jurisdiction to Determine whether Public Authority has Acted Compatibly with Human Rights Director of Housing v TK [2010] VCAT Application 2010/11921 (Unreported, 22 July 2010) VCAT Deputy President Lambrick has held that the Tribunal has jurisdiction to determine whether an application made pursuant to ss 250 and 330(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act [...]

Castles v Secretary to the Department of Justice [2010] VSC 310 (9 July 2010)

Right to Humane Treatment in Detention and Prisoner Access to Health Care Castles v Secretary to the Department of Justice [2010] VSC 310 (9 July 2010) On 9 July 2010, the Supreme Court of Victoria found that the plaintiff, Kimberley Castles, is entitled under s 47(1)(f) of the Corrections Act 1986 to undergo IVF treatment.  [...]

Evans, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for Defence [2010] EWHC 1445 (Admin) (25 June 2010)

Torture and the Transfer of Prisoners Evans, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for Defence [2010] EWHC 1445 (Admin) (25 June 2010) Ms Evans, a peace activist, sought to stop the practice of British personnel transferring detainees to the Afghan authorities by arguing the practice exposed such transferees to a real risk [...]

Castles v Secretary of the Department of Justice & Ors [2010] VSC 181 (4 May 2010)

Supreme Court Orders Speedy Trial to Determine Prisoner’s Eligibility to Access IVF Treatment under Victorian Charter Castles v Secretary of the Department of Justice & Ors [2010] VSC 181 (4 May 2010) The Supreme Court of Victoria has rejected an application by a female prisoner for an injunction restraining the Secretary of the Department of [...]

Director of Housing v Turcan [2010] VCAT Ref No R201011922 (Unpublished, 4 May 2010)

What does Proper Consideration of Human Rights Entail? Director of Housing v Turcan [2010] VCAT Ref No R201011922 (Unpublished, 4 May 2010) The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal has considered the meaning of ‘arbitrary’ and ‘unlawful’ in the context of s 13(a) of the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006, as well as [...]

Director of Housing v Sudi [2010] VCAT 328 (31 March 2010)

Eviction from Public Housing without Adequate Justification a Breach of Human Rights Justice Bell, sitting as President of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, has held that the Director of Housing acted unlawfully under s 38(1) of the Charter in seeking, without adequate justification, to evict a refugee family from social housing in breach of [...]

Sagen v Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, 2009 BCCA 522 (20 November 2009)

Equality and Public Authorities: Court Considers Exclusion of Female Ski Jumpers from Winter Olympics and Paralympics Sagen v Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, 2009 BCCA 522 (20 November 2009) The British Columbian Court of Appeal has confirmed that the Canadian Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms does not apply [...]

Joseph v City of Johanesburg [2009] ZACC 30 (9 October 2009)

No Longer Left in the Dark: Right to Municipal Services and the Procedural Fairness Obligations of Electricity Providers Joseph v City of Johanesburg [2009] ZACC 30 (9 October 2009) The Constitutional Court of South Africa has held that government-owned electricity service providers have an obligation to accord procedural fairness to tenants receiving electricity before disconnecting [...]

Victorian Electoral Commission (Anti-Discrimination Exemption) [2009] VCAT 2191 (30 September 2009)

Equality and Exemptions: Discrimination on the Grounds of Political Activity Victorian Electoral Commission (Anti-Discrimination Exemption) [2009] VCAT 2191 (30 September 2009) VCAT has granted the Victorian Electoral Commission (‘VEC’) an exemption from the Equal Opportunity Act 1995 (Vic) (‘EO Act’) to enable the VEC to take into account certain political activities of a person when [...]

Lifestyle Communities Ltd (No 3) (Anti-discrimination) [2009] VCAT 1869 (22 September 2009)

Age Discrimination and Equal Opportunity Exemptions under the Victorian Charter Lifestyle Communities Ltd (No 3) (Anti-discrimination) [2009] VCAT 1869 (22 September 2009) In September 2009, VCAT President Justice Kevin Bell dismissed an application by Lifestyle Communities Ltd for an exemption under the Equal Opportunity Act 1995 (Vic) (‘EOA’).  In making the orders, Bell P extensively [...]

Homeground Services v Mohamed (Residential Tenancies) [2009] VCAT 1131 (6 July 2009)

Right to Privacy and Unlawfulness of Eviction into Homelessness Homeground Services v Mohamed (Residential Tenancies) [2009] VCAT 1131 (6 July 2009) The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (‘VCAT’) has held that a non-profit welfare agency acted unlawfully pursuant to s 38(1) of the Victorian Charter  in seeking to evict a young tenant from transitional housing [...]

London & Quadrant Housing Trust v Weaver, R (On the application of) [2009] EWCA Civ 587 (18 June 2009)

UK Court of Appeal Considers Definitions of ‘Public Authority’ and ‘Private Act’ London & Quadrant Housing Trust v Weaver, R (On the application of) [2009] EWCA Civ 587 (18 June 2009) A recent decision of the Court of Appeal has revisited the vexed issue of the definition of ‘public authority’.  The decision warrants attention for [...]

Residents of Joe Slovo Community v Thubelisha Homes & Ors [2009] ZACC 16 (10 June 2009)

Evictions Must be Just, Equitable and Reasonable Residents of Joe Slovo Community v Thubelisha Homes & Ors [2009] ZACC 16 (10 June 2009) The South African Constitutional Court has upheld a High Court decision to grant an application to evict approximately 20,000 residents of the informal settlement known as the Joe Slovo settlement.  The eviction [...]

Khadr v Canada (Minister for Justice) [2009] FC 405 (23 April 2009)

Obligations of States to Citizens Detained Abroad Khadr v Canada (Minister for Justice) [2009] FC 405 On 23 April 2009, the Federal Court of Canada handed down a decision which discussed in detail the right of citizens to request their government to provide protection against acts which violate accepted norms of international law during a [...]