Osland v Secretary to the Department of Justice

Administrative law – Freedom of information - Exempt documents - Petition for mercy denied by Governor acting on advice of Attorney-General - Attorney- General had received legal advice from various sources - Attorney-General issued press release mentioning advice from one source that petition should be denied but did not mention advice from other sources - Freedom of information request by petitioner for all advices granted upon review by Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal ("VCAT") - VCAT of opinion that public interest required access to all advices to be granted - Whether open to VCAT to form opinion that public interest required access to be granted - Relevance of differences between advices.

Administrative law – Judicial review - Where Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 (Vic) ("Act") provided for appeal to Court of Appeal on a question of law and empowered Court of Appeal to make orders on appeal including orders VCAT "could have made" - VCAT of opinion that public interest required disclosure of all advices - Court of Appeal examined advices and formed own view, without considering the correctness of VCAT's analysis, that public interest did not require access to be granted - Nature of "appeal" under Act - Whether VCAT decision attended by error of law.

Words and phrases – "appeal", "exempt documents", "public interest".

Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic) – ss 32, 50(4).

Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 (Vic) – ss 148(1), 148(7).