Murphy and National Disability Insurance Agency

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered whether to dismiss an application for review of a National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) decision. The applicant sought review of the NDIS’s decision that she did not meet the access criteria. The core issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant's application should be dismissed under subsection 42A(2) of the *Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975* (Cth) due to her failure to attend multiple scheduled Telephone Directions Hearings (TDHs) on 4 August 2022, 2 September 2022, 12 September 2022, and 4 October 2022.

The Tribunal's reasoning focused on the applicant's persistent failure to attend the TDHs and the history of the proceedings. While the applicant had initially engaged with the Tribunal and her advocates, a series of adjournments and missed conferences had occurred. These included delays attributed to medical appointments, the appointment of legal representatives, and external factors like flooding. Despite directions issued in May 2021 requiring the applicant to provide further medical reports, the applicant had not attended subsequent scheduled hearings. The Tribunal considered the impact of these failures on the progression of the review.