In a unanimous decision the High Court declared the Sri Lankan men, detained at Christmas Island, were denied procedural fairness in applying for refugee status.
Mr McLelland said the ruling would affect refugee appeals rather than the overall regime of offshore processing.
"I understand the decision is not to overturn the offshore processing regime but rather to indicate that there is a level of review," he told Sky News today.
"Additional review is appropriate in respect to legal matters relating to the decision making process, including potentially those relating to the issue of procedural fairness."
Lawyers interpreting the decision said it would affect refugee application procedures set up by the Rudd government in 2008, rather than 2001 laws which excised Christmas Island from the migration zone to deny asylum seekers legal rights. In the High Court case the asylum seekers, identified only as plaintiffs M61 and M69, arrived by boat in 2009, reaching Christmas Island on October 2 last year.
Both claimed refugee status out of fear they faced persecution from the Sri Lankan army because of their alleged support for the Liberation Tamil Tigers of Eelam.
Faced with deportation, the pair appealed to the High Court on grounds of lack of procedural fairness because former immigration minister Chris Evans had failed to personally consider their cases.
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