CGXH and National Disability Insurance Agency

This matter concerned an application by CGXH (the Applicant) for an order upholding their objection to the inspection of certain documents produced under summons by a general practitioner, a neurologist, and a psychiatrist. The National Disability Insurance Agency (the Respondent) sought to inspect these documents as part of proceedings before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (the Tribunal).

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the documents produced under summons related to the proceedings to such an extent that there was a real possibility they might assist in their resolution. This involved determining whether the documents fell within the scope of the summons requests and were therefore relevant to the Applicant's eligibility for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, particularly concerning a diagnosis of Functional Neurological Disorder (FND).

The Tribunal acknowledged that the power to issue summons under section 40A of the *Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975* (Cth) is broad. While documents produced may meet the summons' scope, they might be unrelated to the proceedings. However, the Tribunal found that it was not clear at that stage that the documents produced were unrelated to the Applicant's condition, and that expert medical evidence would likely guide this determination. The Tribunal stated it was not prepared to second-guess the interpretation of the summons' scope or conclude that documents relating to the Applicant's general medical conditions and health would have no bearing on the diagnosis or impact of FND. Furthermore, the Tribunal noted that in reviewing access criteria for the NDIS, it is not limited to impairments identified by the applicant and may consider other relevant evidence.

The Tribunal ordered that leave be granted for the Respondent to inspect the summoned material, with the exception of pages 40-43 of the document produced by the Neurologist dated 6 September 2022. This exception was made to allow the Applicant time to consider her position and seek advice regarding the sensitive material.