Russell and Secretary, Department of Social Services (Social services second review)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the dispute between Russell and the Secretary, Department of Social Services, concerning the calculation of liquid assets for the purpose of Newstart Allowance. The applicants had received insurance money, and the central question was how this sum should be treated in determining their eligibility for the allowance.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was the interpretation of "liquid assets" as defined in the *Social Security Act 1991* (Cth) and whether certain insurance proceeds should be included in the calculation for the purposes of a liquid assets waiting period. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine the application of section 1118 of the Act to the liquid assets waiting period provisions in section 14A.

The Tribunal found that the insurance money received by the applicants on 16 May 2017 should be disregarded when calculating the value of their liquid assets under section 598 of the Act. Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the original decision under review and substituted it with this finding. The matter was then remitted to the Respondent for reconsideration and recalculation of the applicants' entitlement in accordance with this determination.