The government should not have bypassed parliament by giving the finance minister the power to fund the postal survey on same-sex marriage, the High Court has heard.
Marriage equality advocates trying to stop the postal survey argue there was no urgent need for the advance to the minister used to fund the $122 million survey nor was the situation unforeseen.
The government bypassed parliament when there was no urgent need to do so, Ron Merkel QC told the full bench of the High Court.
"There was no urgent need because the government was quite able to put the appropriation for the survey to the House or the Senate, but it didn't occur," the former Federal Court judge said on Tuesday.
"On the facts of this case, no minister acting reasonably could have concluded in accordance with the law that this was an urgent need."
The voluntary survey was Plan B after the Senate blocked the compulsory plebiscite promised by the coalition at the 2016 election.
