Ridley and Chief Executive Officer, National Disability Insurance Agency (Freedom of information)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered a freedom of information request made by Mr. Tony Ridley against the Chief Executive Officer of the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA). Mr. Ridley, a former labour-hire staff member of the NDIA, sought access to specific email correspondence related to him during certain periods. The NDIA had made a decision under section 24(1) of the *Freedom of Information Act 1982* (Cth) to refuse the request on the grounds of practical refusal, arguing that processing the request would substantially and unreasonably divert the agency's resources from its other operations, as per section 24AA(1)(a)(i) of the Act.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether a practical refusal reason existed for Mr. Ridley's request. This involved assessing whether the work involved in processing the request would indeed substantially and unreasonably divert the NDIA's resources from its other operations. The onus was on the NDIA to satisfy the Tribunal that access should be refused, as stipulated by section 61 of the *Freedom of Information Act 1982* (Cth).

The Tribunal accepted Mr. Ridley's submission regarding his role as Assistant Director Operational Risk, noting that his job description and reporting lines may not have been fully updated. The Tribunal's reasoning focused on the application of section 24AA(1)(a)(i) of the FOI Act, which permits an agency to refuse a request if processing it would substantially and unreasonably divert its resources. The NDIA, as the respondent, bore the burden of proving that this condition was met.