Preparing for a Hearing
To prepare for an SSAT review of a Centrelink decision you can:
a) Read the Centrelink Authorised Review Officer letter
You can familiarise yourself with what the Authorised Review Officer (ARO) has said about your case, and be prepared to point out to the SSAT which parts of the ARO's decision or reasoning you disagree with and why you disagree.
b) Read the Centrelink documents
Centrelink will send you relevant documents from your PPL records which are relevant to the application for review. You should familiarise yourself with these documents. The SSAT member who hears your case will have read these documents.
c) Prepare a summary
You do not have to prepare any written
documents if you do not want to. SSAT members are skilled at asking
questions to obtain the information which is required to make a
fresh decision. The SSAT does not expect people to make submissions
or present a case to it. You can just tell the SSAT your side of
the story in your own words.
If you prefer, you might like to prepare a brief written summary
of your case, even if only for your own reference during the
hearing. The summary could be a series of "dot points". It is a
good way to make sure that you raise all the matters you want to
raise. If you prepare it in a form that can be left with, or sent
to, the SSAT member, it is a good way to ensure that all aspects of
your case are considered.
d) Gather additional relevant evidence
If you have kept any records of your contact with Centrelink relevant to your review, such as notes or copies of letters and forms, you should bring them with you to the hearing.
Any relevant information given to the SSAT at (or before) the
hearing will be placed on your Centrelink file. These papers will
be returned to Centrelink after the hearing.
If you think that information is important to your case and that
the SSAT should know about it, you should tell the member at the
hearing - even if you have given this information to Centrelink in
the past. It may or may not be in the hearing papers. If you have
additional documentary information for the SSAT, it is a good idea
to retain a copy of the information you provide for your
records.
e) Complete Statement of Financial Circumstances (when asked)
Sometimes your current financial circumstances will be relevant to the SSAT. The Tribunal has prepared a form, 'Statement of Financial Circumstances' that will enable you to accurately summarise your financial situation. In debt matters and some other matters, the SSAT will send this form for you to complete. You should fill it out as best you can and send it to the SSAT before the hearing. If this form has not been sent to you but you think the information is important for your case, it is available on the Downloads page on this website, or you can ask a Case Manager to send you the form.