Bushby and Secretary, Department of Social Services (Social services second review)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered a dispute concerning the Applicant's eligibility for a carer's allowance. The Applicant sought to establish qualification for this allowance on 19 September 2017, a date central to the assessment of her claim.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the Applicant met the criteria stipulated in section 954 of the relevant Act for receiving a carer's allowance. Specifically, this involved determining if the care receiver achieved a minimum score of 30 under the Adult Disability Assessment Determination (ADAT) on the date of the claim, as required by the legislation.

The Tribunal reasoned that the temporal element of the claim meant only the conditions and assessments as at the date of the claim were relevant. The ADAT, comprising both a claimant and a professional questionnaire, was used to assess the care receiver's needs. In this instance, the combined score from these questionnaires was 25, falling short of the required 30. The Tribunal noted that any subsequent deterioration in the care receiver's condition would necessitate a new claim. Consequently, as the Applicant did not satisfy the minimum score requirement under the ADAT on the date of her claim, she did not qualify for the carer's allowance. The Tribunal affirmed the decision of the AAT.