The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) is to face a review following its third year of operation.
Former High Court Judge Ian Callinan will carry out the review, which is required by the law that established the AAT from a merger of the former Social Security Appeals Tribunal, the Migration Review Tribunal and the Refugee Review Tribunal in July 2015.
Attorney-General, Christian Porter said the amalgamation of the Commonwealth Tribunals was a significant reform to Australia’s administrative law framework.
“This review, required under the legislation that provided for the amalgamation, is important to evaluate the success of the amalgamation now that three years has passed since its implementation,” Mr Porter said.
“The review seeks to identify whether the operations of the Tribunal can be further improved to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the Commonwealth merits review jurisdiction and support high-quality and consistent Government decision-making.”
He said it was a timely opportunity to ensure the Tribunal was meeting its statutory objectives — in particular, that it was promoting public trust and confidence through its decisions and the decisions reflected community expectations.
Mr Porter said Mr Callinan was ideally placed to undertake the review because, as well as being a former Justice of the High Court, he had extensive experience as a barrister and had previously undertaken reviews into Sydney’s lockout laws and Victoria’s parole system.
Submissions addressing any of the terms of reference can be made until 24 August.
Mr Callinan is due to provide his report by 31 October.
The Terms of Reference for the review can be accessed at this PS News link.
