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

This matter concerned an application for review by Ms Hadley, who had received a lump sum compensation payment of $150,000 following a motor vehicle accident on 30 August 2013, which caused her neck injuries. Ms Hadley had been receiving Carer Payment for many years in respect of her caring responsibilities for one of her children. The Department of Social Services (the Department) determined that a lump sum preclusion period applied from 30 August 2013 to 5 March 2015 and that $30,819.47 was recoverable by Centrelink. An Authorised Review Officer affirmed this decision, as did the Social Security and Child Support Division of the Tribunal. Ms Hadley sought further review.

The court was required to determine whether a lump sum preclusion period applied to Ms Hadley's compensation payment, and if so, its commencement date and duration. It also needed to ascertain if any amount of the lump sum was recoverable by Centrelink and, if so, the specific amount. Finally, the court had to consider whether there were any special circumstances that would justify exercising discretion to treat a portion of the compensation as not having been made for the purposes of the relevant legislation.

The court found that, as the settlement sum included a component for economic loss, a lump sum preclusion period applied under section 1170 of the *Social Security Act 1991*. The court determined that the preclusion period should commence on 1 September 2013 and end on 7 March 2015. The court also concluded that there were no special circumstances warranting the exercise of discretion to reduce the recoverable compensation amount. Consequently, the recovery of $30,918.47 in compensation-affected payments was affirmed. The decision under review was varied only to adjust the commencement and end dates of the lump sum preclusion period.