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

This matter concerned an application for an extension of time to seek review of a decision made by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT). The applicant, Mr Wiltz, sought to appeal a decision of the AAT dated 5 June 2020, which affirmed an earlier decision. Mr Wiltz filed his application for review of the AAT's decision on 16 September 2020, which was 75 days after the prescribed 28-day time limit had expired. The Secretary, Department of Social Services, opposed the extension.

The central issue before the Tribunal was whether it was reasonable in all the circumstances to grant Mr Wiltz an extension of time to lodge his application for review. The Tribunal was required to consider various factors, including the length of the delay, the applicant's awareness of his appeal rights, and any explanation provided for the delay. The Tribunal also had regard to the purpose of statutory time limits, which is to ensure certainty and finality in administrative decision-making.

In its reasoning, the Tribunal noted that the 75-day delay was significant and weighed against granting an extension, as it could be inconsistent with the need for certainty and finality. While acknowledging that an acceptable explanation for delay is not an essential pre-condition for an extension, the Tribunal found Mr Wiltz's explanation inadequate. He had received a letter advising him of the time limits but failed to read it because he was angry with the decision and "tossed" it in the bin. The Tribunal considered this failure to read the notification of appeal rights, due to anger, to be an insufficient reason to exercise its discretion in his favour.

Ultimately, the Tribunal was not satisfied that it was reasonable in all the circumstances to extend the time for Mr Wiltz to lodge his application for review. Accordingly, the application for an extension of time was refused.