Todd v Repatriation Commission

[2008] FCA 1276

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Todd v Repatriation Commission [2008] FCA 1276

ADMINISTRATIVE LAW – veterans’ affairs - eligibility for receipt of pension – appeal from decision of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal affirming decision not to allow disability claim for anxiety disorder – whether Tribunal erred in failing to give reasons or sufficient reasons to support conclusions reached – whether Tribunal erred in failing to apply beneficial criteria of the legislation and thereby applied irrelevant considerations in reaching its decision – where tribunal has explained why it prefers a particular body of medical evidence- where no error of law in the way the Tribunal chose to express its reasons

Veterans’ Entitlement Act 1986 (Cth)
Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975 (Cth) s 44

Repatriation Commission v Warren (2008) 101 ALD 222 applied

GORDON TODD v REPATRIATION COMMISSION

QUD 87 OF 2008

LOGAN J
21 JULY 2008
BRISBANE

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA
QUEENSLAND DISTRICT REGISTRY	QUD 87 OF 2008

BETWEEN:	GORDON TODD Applicant
AND:	REPATRIATION COMMISSION Respondent

JUDGE:	LOGAN J
DATE OF ORDER:	21 JULY 2008
WHERE MADE:	BRISBANE

THE COURT ORDERS THAT:

1.The appeal is dismissed.

2.The Applicant is to pay the Respondent’s costs of and incidental to the appeal, to be taxed.

Note:    Settlement and entry of orders is dealt with in Order 36 of the Federal Court Rules.

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA
QUEENSLAND DISTRICT REGISTRY	QUD 87 OF 2008

BETWEEN:	GORDON TODD Applicant
AND:	REPATRIATION COMMISSION Respondent

JUDGE:	LOGAN J
DATE:	21 JULY 2008
PLACE:	BRISBANE

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

1. Mr Gordon Todd served in the regular naval forces of the Commonwealth between 1966 and 1975.  He served thereafter for a substantial period also in the Royal Australian Naval Reserve.  It is his period of regular naval service that has given rise to a claim which he made under the Veterans’ Entitlements Act1986 (Cth) (“Veterans’ Entitlements Act”) and, in due course, to proceedings before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (“the Tribunal”) which, in turn, have become the subject of an appeal to this Court.  His regular naval service included what is known as “operational service” for the purposes of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act.  That comprised a period of 12 days in 1969 between 14 and 25 May 1969 during which he served on HMAS Vampire and another period of some five weeks in 1972, 14 February to 9 March 1972, during which he served on HMAS Sydney. Mr Todd’s service in the regular naval forces also included a period from 7 December 1972 until his discharge from the regular naval forces on 13 January 1975, which constituted “defence service” for the purposes of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act. 

2. By a claim which was received by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs on 20 January 2005, Mr Todd made a claim in respect of a disability which was identified in that claim as “anxiety disorder”.  He attributed that particular condition to “excessive worry, poor sleep habits and social withdrawal”, in terms of symptoms, and as to…