Senate Inquiry into CASA.

[Boratous]

Bob

NT;

This came across my desk this evening and I have not read it fully, nor fathom it at this stage.

Although it doesn't say as much in early reading I am prompted that there is an AAT stay in court under 30DC (?) until 21st July 2008.

Lip-Air Pty Limited v Civil Aviation Safety Authority [2008] FCA 866 (5 June 2008)

I think what this is saying is that if CASA had suspended the AOC directly then there would have been an automatic stay. But rather than doing that, CASA cancelled the Chief pilot approval and check pilot approval, which had the indirect effect of suspending the AOC. But this tactic denied the operator the right to an automatic stay. The judge says that he believes this tactic is ultra vires when you look at the totality of the enforcement changes that were made in 2003 which were intended to make CASA decisions subject to effective review. On that basis he granted a stay of the CASA decision pending a hearing by the AAT to determine whether a stay should be granted (the point here is that although the Chief Pilot and check pilot decisions are not necessarily subject to an automatic stay, the AAT can grant a stay under its powers under the AAT Act -so the Federal Court stayed the decisions until the AAT could look at them and decide whether or not to grant a stay)