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

This matter concerned an appeal by Ms Stegnjaic against a decision of the Secretary of the Department of Social Services to cancel her disability support pension. The appeal was heard by Dr L Bygrave, a Member of the relevant tribunal.

The central legal issue before the tribunal was whether Ms Stegnjaic's medical conditions, specifically a spinal condition and a lower limb condition, met the criteria for a disability support pension under the relevant impairment tables. This required determining if her impairments were fully diagnosed, treated, and stabilised, and if they resulted in a sufficient level of functional impairment to qualify for the pension.

The tribunal considered the evidence regarding Ms Stegnjaic's conditions. It was found that her spinal condition resulted in a moderate functional impairment, while her lower limb condition presented with a mild functional impairment. Based on this assessment, the tribunal concluded that the threshold for a disability support pension was not met. The decision under review, which affirmed the cancellation of the pension, was therefore upheld.