Administrative Law FAQs

Administrative law is one of the most rapidly developing areas of Australian law, yet most people have never heard the term. If you have ever had a licence refused, seen a development approved near your home, or disagreed with a decision made by a council, a state department, or a federal minister, administrative law is the framework that determines whether that decision was made correctly and what, if anything, you can do about it.

When challenging a government or council decision in Queensland, the single most important question to answer first is: which type of review is available to you? The answer shapes everything: which court or tribunal you go to, what outcome you can realistically achieve, how much it will cost, and whether you can represent yourself. The two types are merits review and judicial review, and they are fundamentally different. The Queensland Law Handbook provides a useful overview of administrative law and the review mechanisms available at queenslandlawhandbook.org.au: Complaints About Government .

Standing is the threshold question in any administrative law challenge. Before asking whether you can win, you must first ask whether you are legally entitled to bring the challenge at all. Get this wrong and your application will be dismissed before it reaches the merits, regardless of how strong your underlying case is. The concept of standing exists because courts and tribunals are not available to anyone who disagrees with a decision in principle. The law requires that you have a sufficient legal interest to justify the use of public resources in resolving your dispute. What counts as sufficient interest varies significantly depending on the type of review, the legislation involved, and whether you are in a state or federal proceeding.

Before spending any money on a court challenge, get the decision-maker to explain themselves. In Queensland, you have a statutory right to compel a government body to set out its reasoning in writing. That document — a statement of reasons — is almost always the most important piece of evidence in any subsequent judicial review application, and obtaining it costs nothing beyond a letter. The Queensland Government’s overview of the statement of reasons process is available at qld.gov.au: Judicial Review .

Natural justice is the oldest and most frequently litigated ground for challenging a government decision. It does not require you to show that the decision-maker made a factual error or applied the wrong law. It requires only that you were not given a fair opportunity to participate in the process before a decision was made that adversely affected you, or that the person making the decision was not impartial. Courts apply it rigorously because it goes to the legitimacy of the decision-making process itself, not just the outcome.

When court action to challenge a government decision is too expensive, the Ombudsman represents a free, powerful alternative. Andrew Bell explains the powers, investigations, and findings of state and federal Ombudsmen.

The Human Rights Act 2019 (Qld) requires all Queensland government entities to act and make decisions compatible with 23 protected human rights. Andrew Bell explains how this adds a powerful lever to administrative law challenges.

Online campaigns on Change.org often collect thousands of signatures but carry no legal status. Andrew Bell explains the formal e-petition process that forces a ministerial response in Queensland’s Parliament.