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

This matter concerned an appeal by Shannon against a decision of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (Social Services and Child Support Division) regarding the commencement date of her Newstart Allowance. The dispute centred on whether the Department of Social Services had correctly determined the start date of the allowance, specifically whether it should have been backdated to an earlier date than that initially granted.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was to determine the correct start date for the respondent's Newstart Allowance. This involved considering whether the claim form was lodged on the date of actual lodgement or if it should be deemed lodged at an earlier point due to contact with the Department. Furthermore, the Tribunal had to assess whether any special circumstances existed that would have made earlier lodgement of the claim not reasonably practicable, and whether the decision under review was one that could be set aside and substituted.

The Tribunal found that the decision of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal dated 7 November 2017 should be set aside. In its place, the Tribunal reinstated the decision of the Authorised Review Officer dated 10 October 2017. This reinstated decision confirmed that the correct and preferable start date for the respondent's Newstart Allowance was 10 July 2017.