R v Kirby; Ex parte Boilermakers' Society of Australia

Boilermakers' case
Court	High Court of Australia
Full case name	R v Kirby; Ex parte Boilermakers' Society of Australia
Decided	2 March 1956
Citation(s)	(1956) 94 CLR 254
Case history
Subsequent action(s)	none
Court membership
Judge(s) sitting	Dixon CJ, McTiernan, Williams, Webb, Fullagar, Kitto and Taylor JJ

The Boilermakers' case^[1] was a 1956 decision of the High Court of Australia, holding that the judicial power of the Commonwealth could not be vested in a tribunal that also exercised non-judicial functions. It is a major case dealing with the separation of powers in Australian law.

The significance of the case was that it restricted the use of judicial power to Chapter III courts (under the Australian Constitution), also establishing that these courts could exercise no other power. In this way, it set a high standard for the separation of judicial power.

References

1. R v Kirby; Ex parte Boilermakers' Society of Australia (1956) 94 CLR 254