Murray and Australian Offshore Solutions Pty Ltd (Compensation)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviewed a decision to cease the Applicant's weekly compensation payments. The Applicant had been receiving compensation under the *Seafarers Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1992* (Cth) following a left shoulder injury sustained in March 2018. The employer contended that the Applicant had recovered from his injury and possessed the capacity to perform his pre-injury duties.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the Applicant was incapacitated for work as an integrated rating due to his accepted left shoulder injury, thereby entitling him to continued compensation payments under section 31 of the Act. This required the Tribunal to assess the Applicant's capacity for work and determine if any such incapacity was a direct result of the accepted injury, or if it was attributable to other factors or pre-existing conditions.

The Tribunal considered extensive evidence, including medical reports and the Applicant's own testimony regarding his physical condition and past disclosures. While acknowledging that the Applicant experienced reduced range of motion, pain, and stiffness in his left shoulder following surgery, the Tribunal found that this did not automatically equate to an incapacity for his pre-injury role. Crucially, the Tribunal noted significant concerns regarding the Applicant's credibility, particularly in light of admissions that he had not been entirely truthful in past disclosures about his psychological health and his fitness for work. The Tribunal concluded that the Applicant had not demonstrated an incapacity to engage in any work as a result of his accepted injury.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision to cease the Applicant's weekly compensation payments. The Tribunal found that the Applicant's entitlement to compensation had effectively ended prior to the cessation date, particularly from the point at which he was certified as having the capacity to undertake a work trial of his pre-injury duties and was deemed fit for such work by relevant medical assessments.