Judicial review of judgement of Tribunal; Scope of.

Administrative law, Judicial Review

Finality assigned to the decision of Tribunal:

Judicial review of error of law committed by a tribunal:

Visitor of a university acting as a judge has exclusive jurisdiction and that his decision is final in all matters within his jurisdiction. The common law courts have through three centuries consistently resisted all attempts to appeal decisions of the visitor. The courts have however been prepared to confine the visitor to his proper role as a judge of the internal
affairs of the foundation by the use of the writs of prohibition and mandamus.

Can Courts judicially review such decision?

per Lord Browne (Lord Kieth concurring) (Majority decision): The court has no jurisdiction to review the decision of a visitor made within his jurisdiction.
per Lord Grriffith: It is in my opinion important to keep the purpose of judicial review clearly in mind. The purpose is to ensure that those bodies that are susceptible to judicial review have carried out their public duties in the way it was intended they should. In the case of bodies other than courts, in so far as they are required to apply the law they are required to apply the law correctly. If they apply the law incorrectly they have not performed their duty
correctly and judicial review is available to correct their error of law so that they may make their decision upon a proper understanding of the law.

In the case of inferior courts, that is courts, of a lower status than the High  Court, such as the Justices of the Peace, it was recognised that their learning and understanding of the law might sometimes be imperfect and require correction by the High Court and so the rule evolved that certiorari was available to correct an error of law of an inferior court. At first it was confined to an error on the face of the record but it is now available to correct any error of law made by an inferior court. But despite this general rule Parliament can if it wishes confine a decision on a question of law to a particular inferior court and provide that the decision shall be final so that it is not to be challenged either by appeal or by judicial review.

 per Lord Slynn (Lord Mustill, concurring) (Minority view): With deference to the contrary view of the majority of your Lordships, in my opinion if certiorari can go to a particular tribunal it is available on all the grounds which have been judicially recognised. I can see no reasons in principle for limiting the availability of certiorari to a patent excess of power (as where
a Visitor has decided something which was not within his remit) and excluding review on other grounds recognised by the law. If it is accepted, as I believe it should be accepted, that certiorari goes not only for such an excess or abuse of power but also for a breach of the rules of natural justice there is even less reason in principle for excluding other established grounds. If therefore certiorari is generally available for error of law not involving abuse of power (as on the basis of Lord Diplock’s speeches I consider that it is so available) then it should be available also in respect of a decision of a Visitor. 
I am not persuaded that the jurisdiction of the Visitor involves such exceptional considerations that this principle should be departed from and that some grounds be accepted and others held not to be available for the purposes of judicial review.
[Source: Regina v. Lord President of the Privy Council  ex. p. ]
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