The judge hearing Novak Djokovic’s appeal of the Australian government’s decision to revoke his entry visa was dramatically overturned.
The tennis star was released from custody, and the government was ordered to pay his legal fees by Judge Anthony Kelly.
The Serbian, 34, arrived in Melbourne last week in the hopes of defending his Australian Open title.
On the other hand, Minister of Immigration Alex Hawke has the authority to revoke his visa on new grounds.
Judge Kelly previously stated that the tennis star appeared to have obtained the required travel restriction exemption prior to his arrival in the country.
The government admitted in court that Djokovic was not given enough time to respond after his visa was revoked.
The trial began on Monday morning, following delays caused by technical issues with a live stream of the proceedings.
Djokovic’s lawyers claimed that the 20-time Grand Slam winner entered the country, believing that his exemption from the requirement to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 was valid.
Nick Wood told the court that the player had been granted an exemption by two separate medical boards following a recent coronavirus infection and that he had presented all of the necessary medical evidence to officials.
“He had completed all of his responsibilities. Tennis Australia had demanded that he comply with all of their demands, and he had “Mr. Wood elaborated.
Judge Kelly seemed to agree with Mr. Wood’s point of view, telling government lawyers that what he had heard so far had “agitated” him.
“What else could this man have done?” he wondered aloud.
Djokovic’s lawyers have also claimed that Australian Border Force officers treated him unfairly after his arrival.
After being approached by officials at the airport, he requested to wait until the morning to hear from his team before deciding whether or not to leave the country. At first, officials had agreed to it.
After that, he fell asleep, but was awoken at 6:00 a.m. by officers who allegedly pressed him to respond “because it would be better for him if they made the decision right away.”
According to government lawyer Christopher Tran, Djokovic’s recent Covid infection did not qualify him for a travel exemption, and he denied that the decision was unfair or unreasonable.
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