Secretary of State for the Home Department v AF: a lesson for Australia

This article examines the control order schemes in the United Kingdom ('the UK') and Australia. It analyses Secretary of State for the Home Department v AF (No 3) ('SSHD v AF (No 3)'), 1 in which the House of Lords considered whether the control orders made against certain persons had been issued in ways consistent with their rights to fair hearings as provided by art 6(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights ('ECHR'). 2 The article then outlines Australia's control order scheme and assesses it against Australia's obligations under art 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ('ICCPR'). 3 The article argues that there is the potential for a person's right to a fair hearing under art 14 of the ICCPR to be contravened when a control order is made against him or her. It concludes that a person who believes his or her right has been so contravened can do little domestically to enforce it, in contrast to a person who is the subject of a UK control order.