Jia and Secretary, Department of Social Services

This matter concerned an application for review by Ms Jia against a decision of the Secretary, Department of Social Services. The dispute arose from a recalculated debt amount following an earlier review decision by the Tribunal. The core issue was whether the Tribunal had jurisdiction to review the recalculated debt amount, or if its jurisdiction was limited to reviewing the directions and recommendations made in the first review decision. The case was heard by Deputy C Kendall P of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The legal issue before the Tribunal was the proper interpretation of section 179(2)(d) of the *Administration Act*. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine whether this provision, which stated that the decision under review was "taken to be... the directions or recommendations" of the Tribunal on first review, limited its jurisdiction to only reviewing those directions and recommendations. This interpretation, previously applied in cases like *Owen*, *Aslandidis*, and *Visi*, could prevent the Tribunal from conducting a full merits review of the matter it had already considered.

The Tribunal agreed with the submissions of the Secretary that a narrow interpretation of section 179(2)(d) was inconsistent with the Tribunal's role and purpose. The Tribunal reasoned that its function on review is to stand in the shoes of the original decision-maker and conduct a de novo review, determining the correct or preferable decision based on the current evidence. To limit this review to only the directions and recommendations of a prior Tribunal decision would defeat the core objectives of merits review and prevent the Tribunal from addressing all substantive issues. The Tribunal concluded that a broad interpretation of section 179(2)(d) was logical and preferable, allowing it to determine all substantive issues before it.

The Tribunal found that it had jurisdiction to review afresh the decision for which the Applicant had lodged an application for review, including the recalculated debt amount.