Harris and Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission (Compensation)

This matter concerned an application before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) between Mr. Harris and the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission. The core dispute revolved around the scope of the Tribunal's review concerning a "deeming decision" of actual earnings and the extent of its jurisdiction to consider relevant facts and circumstances. The Commission sought access to summonsed material, arguing its relevance to the disputed issues.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the deeming decision of actual earnings fell within its reviewable jurisdiction. It also needed to ascertain the breadth of its power to consider facts and circumstances when assessing actual earnings, particularly in the context of self-employment, and whether it could have regard to matters beyond the applicant's direct "earnings" in suitable work. A further issue was whether the Tribunal's jurisdiction extended to considering facts and circumstances up to the date of its own decision.

The Tribunal accepted the Commission's contention that the deeming decision of actual earnings was within its scope of review, as it was part of the delegate's original decision. Applying section 181(1) of the *Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004* (MRC Act), the Tribunal found that it possessed a broad, residual discretion to "have regard to any other matter it considers relevant" when determining actual earnings. This discretion, while not unfettered, allowed for considerations beyond the applicant's direct earnings, particularly in cases of self-employment where business profits might not accurately reflect earning capacity. The Tribunal drew analogy from Federal Court and AAT decisions concerning similar provisions in the *Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988*, finding that the structure and purpose of the MRC Act supported this broad interpretation. The Tribunal also confirmed that its jurisdiction extended to considering facts and circumstances up to the date of its decision. Consequently, leave was granted to the Commission to inspect and rely on the summonsed materials deemed relevant.