Administrative Justice, Procedural Fairness and Public Trust: Reform Options for Low-Value Infringement Review Systems in New South Wales

This Discussion Paper builds upon the findings of the preceding Issues Paper examining administrative justice and infringement review systems within Westminster-style democracies -10.5281/zenodo.20739332 The paper evaluates alternative institutional models for the review of low-value infringements and regulatory penalties. Rather than challenging the legitimacy of infringement enforcement, the paper explores how review architecture may influence procedural fairness, public trust, court utilisation, administrative efficiency and democratic legitimacy. Drawing upon comparative experience from Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Canada, the paper evaluates a range of reform options including enhanced internal review, independent merits review panels, specialist adjudication models, tribunal-based systems and hybrid review frameworks. The objective of the paper is to facilitate informed discussion regarding the design of proportionate, accessible and independent review mechanisms capable of preserving enforcement effectiveness while strengthening public confidence in administrative decision-making.