Witson and National Disability Insurance Agency

This matter concerned an application by the Applicant to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for a review of an internal review decision made by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA). The NDIA's internal review had confirmed a prior decision not to approve the Applicant for Sole Occupancy Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA), finding it was not a reasonable and necessary support under the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013. The Applicant sought an order under section 38 of the AAT Act for an additional statement of reasons from the NDIA reviewer.

The central legal issues before the Tribunal were whether it should exercise its discretion under section 38(1) of the AAT Act to order an additional statement of reasons, and whether there was any utility in doing so to advance the fairness and justice of the case. Specifically, the Tribunal considered whether the reviewer had adequately considered the evidence and information relevant to the Applicant's request for Sole Occupancy SDA, and whether the existing statement of reasons was sufficient to inform the Applicant of the basis of the decision.

The Tribunal reasoned that its function on a review de novo was not to scrutinise previous decisions for error, but to determine the issues afresh. It noted that the Applicant had requested an additional statement of reasons because she did not understand the basis of the decision or what evidence was considered. However, the Tribunal found that the NDIA had already provided a statement of reasons, and that the "T" documents filed by the NDIA, including the internal review decision, were not a substitute for a statement of reasons or an additional statement of reasons. The Tribunal concluded that exercising its discretion under section 38(1) would not advance the fairness and justice of the case, as the substantive issues were yet to be determined by the Tribunal.

The Tribunal refused the Applicant's request for an order for an additional statement of reasons.