Administrative law tutoring

Get on top of judicial review.

Administrative law is concerned with challenging government decisions. In a problem question it follows a clear sequence: identify the decision, who may challenge it, on what ground, in which court, and what remedy. Working to that sequence is what keeps judicial review manageable.

Start at module 1 Practice bank · 120 problems Decision flowcharts Browse all subjects

The subject, module by module

Eleven modules, end to end

Each module has a guide — the idea, an attack plan, the cases at a glance, the rules and the common traps — and a decision flowchart. The practice bank holds 120 problems, each with a Pass answer, an H1 answer and examiner's comments.

1
Framework and non-judicial accountability

Merits review, freedom of information and the Ombudsman. This module also carries the interim assessment.
Guide Flowchart 5 memoranda
2
Jurisdiction and avenues

Order 56, section 39B and the ADJR gateway, and the avenue the question locks you into.
Guide Flowchart 10 drills (with 3)
3
Remedies

Certiorari, prohibition, mandamus, declaration and injunction, selected and justified rather than listed.
Guide Flowchart 10 drills (with 2)
4
Standing

Who may bring the application, and the special interest test.
Guide Flowchart 8 drills
5
Framing: error, validity and materiality

Jurisdictional error, invalidity, and the two stage materiality analysis run on the strongest ground.
Guide Flowchart 10 drills
6
Procedural fairness

The hearing rule and the bias rule, argued from the statute before the common law fills any gap.
Guide Flowchart 20 drills
7
Authority grounds

Jurisdictional fact, acting without authority, and delegation and agency.
Guide Flowchart 20 drills
8
Discretion grounds

Relevant and irrelevant considerations, improper purpose, inflexible policy and unreasonableness.
Guide Flowchart 20 drills
9
Privative clauses and limitation devices

Kirk, Plaintiff S157 and the limits of an ouster clause.
Guide Flowchart 12 drills (with 10)
10
Judicial review of delegated legislation

Validity, repugnancy to the Act, and the declaration of invalidity that most answers miss.
Guide Flowchart 12 drills (with 9)
11
The Charter

The section 38 pathway and the Victorian Charter in judicial review. Assessed in the essay.
Guide Flowchart
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Exam tier

Fifteen integrated Part A scenarios in the format of the real paper, 40 marks each, with model answers and examiner's comments.
Practice bank

The challenge

Where students get stuck

The grounds of review overlap, and the jurisdictional framework is detailed. A common difficulty is distinguishing jurisdictional from other error, which affects much of the analysis. Procedural fairness, through the hearing rule and the bias rule, must be applied precisely. The remaining grounds, including relevant and irrelevant considerations, improper purpose, unreasonableness and error of law, each have their own requirements. All of this sits within the correct pathway under the ADJR Act, section 75(v) of the Constitution and section 39B of the Judiciary Act, with the appropriate standing and remedy. Privative clauses and Plaintiff S157 are areas students often find uncertain.

How I help

We work to a single framework and apply it consistently: the decision and jurisdiction, then standing, then each ground argued separately with its rule, authority, application and conclusion, then the available remedies. We focus on the areas that most affect results, including jurisdictional error, procedural fairness and privative clauses, and practise past problems until the structure is reliable.

The method

One method, every problem

Four steps run every argument: name the issue, state the rule, apply it to the facts, conclude. Almost every legal rule shares a skeletal structure: it takes one of six shapes, and any of those shapes may carry a twist. Learn the six shapes and one twist →

Complete, end to end. Eleven module guides, twelve decision flowcharts, a registry of 150 rules, and a practice bank of 120 problems: 100 single issue drills, 5 interim memoranda and 15 integrated exam scenarios, each with a Pass answer, an H1 answer and examiner's comments.

Common questions

Administrative Law tutoring FAQ

Do you cover the grounds and the remedies?

Yes. Standing, the jurisdictional pathways, every ground of review and all the remedies.

I cannot tell jurisdictional error apart. Can you help?

Yes. It is the heart of the subject. We work it with authorities and worked examples until it clicks.

Can we focus on exam problems?

Yes. We practise past problems and build the structure markers reward.

Related subjects: Constitutional Law, Principles of Public Law, Criminal Law & Procedure. See all subjects, or read the publication on practice hypotheticals.

Get on top of Administrative Law.

Work through the eleven module guides, then test yourself on 120 problems with model answers and examiner's comments.

Open the practice bank