Guganovic and Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission (Veterans' entitlements)

This matter concerned an appeal by the applicant, Ms Guganovic, who was the surviving claimant, against a decision of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission (MRCC). The dispute centred on whether Ms Guganovic was entitled to compensation for non-economic loss under section 27 of the *Defence Force Retirement Benefits Act 1971* (DRCA) following the death of the claimant, her late veteran husband. The core of the dispute was whether a determination or decision to pay the section 27 claims had been made prior to the veteran's death, and whether the MRCC had failed to act with due diligence in considering the claim.

The legal issues before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal were whether the applicant was entitled to compensation for non-economic loss under section 27 of the DRCA after the death of the veteran, and whether a determination in respect of such a claim had been made prior to the veteran's death. The Tribunal was also required to consider whether the MRCC had failed to act with due diligence in its consideration of the claim. The Tribunal assumed for the purposes of its decision that no determination or decision to pay the section 27 claims had been made prior to the veteran's death, and that the MRCC was still considering the claim at the time of the veteran's passing.

The Tribunal's reasoning focused on the interplay between section 27 and section 55 of the DRCA. Section 27 provides for compensation for non-economic loss where an injury results in permanent impairment and compensation is payable under section 24. Section 55, however, specifically states that it does not apply in relation to a claim for compensation under section 27. This exclusion meant that the provisions of section 55, which allow for claims to be made by a personal representative after death or for pending claims to continue, and the deeming provision in section 55(3) which treats a determination as if made before death, were not applicable to section 27 claims. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that if no determination was made before the veteran's death, the applicant could not claim compensation for non-economic loss under section 27.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision of the MRCC, finding that the applicant was not entitled to compensation for non-economic loss under section 27 of the DRCA because no determination had been made prior to the veteran's death, and section 55 did not apply to such claims.