Justice Brad Selway - an Ongoing Dialogue

This article discusses three decisions of Justice Selway in which constitutional or quasi constitutional issues were raised. The first, in which the Constitution arose only peripherally, was South Australia v The Honourable Peter Slipper MP, otherwise known as the 'Nuclear Waste Dump Case'. In Civil Aviation Authority v Boatman, the 'Low-Flying Planes Case', we enter the twilight world between judicial and administrative functions. Here a constitutional issue fell for decision. The question was whether s 30DE of the Civil Aviation Act 1988 (Cth) confers upon the Federal Court an administrative function not conferred in aid of the exercise of any judicial power and therefore outside the scope of the judicial power.