The Racing Appeals Tribunal (Tribunal) deals with, among other things, appeals by greyhound racing industry participants and greyhound racing clubs who are aggrieved by certain decisions.
This is a separate process from the internal review process available under section 91 of the Greyhound Racing Act 2017 (NSW). The right of appeal also extends to participants who are aggrieved by the outcome of an internal review.
As outlined in the Racing Appeals Tribunal Act 1983 and Racing Appeals Tribunal Regulation 2024, an appeal can be made to the Tribunal if you are aggrieved by any of the following decisions made by the Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission (GWIC), or a steward appointed by GWIC, or a greyhound racing club, or Greyhound Racing NSW:
- to disqualify or warn off a person;
- to cancel the registration of, or to refuse to register, a person;
- to cancel the registration of, or to refuse to register a greyhound (including registration of a greyhound as a sire and registration of a litter of greyhounds);
- to cancel the registration of, or to refuse to register a greyhound racing club or greyhound trial track;
- to impose a condition on the registration under the Greyhound Racing Act 2017 of any person, greyhound, greyhound racing club or greyhound trial track;
- to fine a person an amount of $200 or more;
- to disqualify a greyhound, if the disqualification is made in conjunction with the imposition of a penalty on the appellant or any other person;
- to suspend any licence, right or privilege granted under the GWIC Greyhound Racing Rules;
- to suspend the registration under the Greyhound Racing Act 2017 of any person, greyhound, greyhound racing club or greyhound trial track;
- to place an endorsement on the registration certificate of a greyhound for marring or failing to pursue the lure, that gives rise to a suspension of the greyhound for a period of more than 4 weeks.
The Tribunal requires any appeal to be lodged in writing with the Appeals Secretary within 7 days of the day on which you were notified of the decision being appealed against. This should be done by completing a Notice of Appeal Form, which must be accompanied by an appeal fee of $250.00.
When you lodge an appeal, you may also apply for an order from the Tribunal that any penalty is stayed pending the determination of your appeal.
The Tribunal requires you to complete and attach an Application for Stay of Decision Form to your Notice of Appeal Form if you seek a stay.
Once an appeal has been lodged, the Tribunal will usually make “orders” which outline the timeline that must be adhered to. The orders will usually relate to:
- the provision of evidence and written submissions;
- the date of a hearing, if required; and
- the type of hearing that might be required (that is, in person or via audio-visual software such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams).
Under section 17A of the Racing Appeals Tribunal Act 1983, the Tribunal has the power to do any of the following in respect of your appeal:
- dismiss the appeal;
- confirm the decision appealed against;
- vary the decision appealed against by substituting any decision that could have been made by the steward, club, the Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission or Greyhound Racing NSW (as the case requires);
- make such other order in relation to the disposal of the appeal as the Tribunal thinks fit.
All forms and fees are to be lodged with the Appeals Secretary
Appeals Secretary
By fax: 02 9199 8313
By email: appeals.secretary@gwic.nsw.gov.au
By post: PO Box 718, Bathurst NSW 2795
For further information about appeals to the Tribunal, please contact the Appeals Secretary on 13 49 42 or review the relevant legislation:
Racing Appeals Tribunal Act 1983
Racing Appeals Tribunal Regulation 2024