|
Where am I now? Lawlink > Administrative Decisions Tribunal of NSW > Practice and Procedures > Equal Opportunity Division: Frequently Asked Questions
|
Print page
|
Equal Opportunity Division: Frequently Asked Questions
1. Where are you and what hours are you open?
2. What do I call the Tribunal members?
3. Can I represent myself?
4. Can I be represented by a legal practitioner or an agent?
5. Does the Tribunal have a duty solicitor?
6. How do I get a copy of a decision?
7. How do I issue a summons for a witness to attend or produce documents?
8. What form(s) do I use to submit an affidavit or statement?
9. How do I file documents?
10. How many copies of documents do I have to have?
11. What is a First Case Conference?
12. What you need to do before the first Case Conference?
13. What will happen at the first Case Conference?
14. What happens if I can’t come to the Case Conference?
15. Can the matter be dismissed?
Where are you and what hours are you open?
Our address is: - Level 15, 111 Elizabeth Street Sydney.
You will find us next door to David Jones women’s store on Elizabeth Street, Sydney. That is between Market and King Streets. The nearest train stations are St James and Martin Place.
We are open from 9:00am until 5:00pm, Monday to Friday.
Documents may be filed and phone enquiries made during these hours.
To access our location map select this link
What do I call the Tribunal Members?
There are several acceptable ways to address the Tribunal Members. If in doubt call them by their family name eg Mr or Ms Smith.
Other options are:
- If the Tribunal Member is a Judge, Acting Judge or a Magistrate, you can call them “Your Honour”
- If the Tribunal Member is the President or a Deputy President, you can call them “President” or “Deputy President”
- If the Tribunal Member has a title such as Professor, you can call them “Professor Smith”
- In all other cases, call the Tribunal Member by their family name for example “Mr or Ms Smith”.
- It is also acceptable to call the Tribunal Member “Member Smith”.
Members will have their nameplate in front of them in the Tribunal room.
Can I represent myself?
Yes, section 71(1)(a) of the Administrative Decisions Tribunal Act 1997 gives you the right to appear before the Tribunal without representation.
The Tribunal’s procedures are designed to help persons that are not legally represented.
If you are experiencing difficulties in understanding what is happening in your matter please call the Registry on 9223 4677 for assistance.
Please note that we are unable to give legal advice but can explain and answer questions on how the Tribunal works.
Can I be represented by a legal practitioner or an agent?
Yes, you can appear for yourself or you can have a legal practitioner or agent representing you.
You have to ask the Tribunal's permission to be represented by an agent. Both you and the agent need to sign the Notice of Representation.
If you have a legal practitioner representing you they will complete the Notice of Representation for you.
The Notice must be filed in the registry and sent to the other party(ies) to the proceedings.
An agent must ask for the Tribunal’s permission the first time the matter is listed after the Notice is filed.
Does the Tribunal have a duty solicitor?
The Tribunal does not have a permanent duty solicitor service. However a solicitor from the Legal Aid Commission is available at the Tribunal on certain days to provide initial general advice and assistance to a party who is unrepresented.
This solicitor may not be able to represent you before the Tribunal, but will give advice on the strength of your case and what you have to do to prepare your case for the Tribunal.
Please note that this service is offered as a once-only appointment either in person or over the telephone. However if you qualify for legal aid the Legal Aid Solicitor will advise you how to apply for this aid.
You can advise the Tribunal member who conducts your Case Conference if you want to make an appointment with the Legal Aid Solicitor. An appointment early in the process will improve your access to legal aid should you qualify for this help and will help you to understand the law and what will happen at your case conference.
Alternatively you can contact the Legal Aid Commission yourself to arrange an appointment to see a Legal Aid solicitor at another location.
How do I get a copy of a decision?
The Tribunal’s written decisions are routinely published on the Tribunal’s website www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/adt.
The written decision should be available on the Internet within 48 hours of the decision being given to the parties.
If you are searching for a recent decision, click on Most Recent Decisions.
If the decision you are looking for is not shown under Most Recent Decisions you can use the search options by clicking on either Quick Search or Advanced Search. For assistance on our how to use the search options you can click on the Search Guide.
Alternatively, you can search for decisions under the Division of the Tribunal they were made in any given year. This will give you the option of a search under most recent cases (cases delivered in the last 50 days), by decision number, view case names or by decision category.
Please note that if the decision you are looking for is not available it may be because:
- the decision was made before the commencement of the Administrative Decisions Tribunal’s jurisdiction,
- the decision has a suppression order and therefore will not be published, or
- the decision is an oral decision.
How do I issue a summons for a witness to attend or produce documents?
If you want to call witnesses at the hearing or ask someone to produce documents, and they won't attend or produce the documents voluntarily, you may ask the Tribunal to issue a summons.
You need to obtain the approval of the Judicial Member before the registry can issue a summons. You should bring a list of persons you wish to summons to the first case conference. The Judicial Member will discuss with you the relevance of the evidence or document to the proceedings.
Once the Judicial Member approves the issue of the summons, you can then complete the necessary forms and ask the registry to have the summons issued. Practice note No. 7 explains how to file and serve a summons. You can find out more information about issuing summonses by contacting the registry or logging on to our website at www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/adt.
What form(s) do I use to submit an affidavit or statement?
There is no prescribed form under the ADT Act or Regulations. However, if you contact the Registry they can provide you with an example of an affidavit or statement. Copies of the example affidavit or statement can be obtained from our website at www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/adt.
An affidavit must be sworn or affirmed in front of a Justice of the Peace or a Solicitor.
Whilst, with a statement all that you need to do is sign it. It does not have to be witnessed.
You are required to file sufficient copies of the affidavit or statement and any attachments for the Tribunal and all parties.
How do I file documents?
Documents may be filed in person or by post.
The Tribunal does not accept filing by fax or email.
How many copies of documents do I have to have?
- the original plus 3 copies (one for each member sitting on the case) for the Tribunal (4 in total), and
- a copy for each party to the proceedings.
If you are unsure please contact the Registry.
What is a First Case Conference?
The first case conference is a meeting between all parties and a Judicial Member of the Tribunal. At the case conference the Judicial Member will explore with you and the other party(ies) the different ways in which the complaint may be resolved, for example whether the matter needs to go to a hearing or can be referred to for mediation.
The first case conference usually occurs within four weeks of a complaint being received by the Tribunal from the Anti Discrimination Board.
The first case conference is scheduled to last for a maximum of one hour and can be conducted in one of two ways:
- the parties and the member meeting face to face in one of the conference rooms at the Tribunal; or
- if a party(ies) lives outside the Sydney metropolitan area or other reasons make it difficult to attend the Tribunal, a case conference can be arranged by telephone.
If you require a telephone conference please contact the Registry and they will arrange this for you. As mobile phone lines are not always reliable please provide the Tribunal with a landline contact number when arranging a phone conference.
What you need to do before the first Case Conference?
Complete your response to the President’s Summary of Complaint
- If you are the applicant you need to fill in the column headed “Applicant’s Response” on the President’s Summary of Complaint.
- If you are the respondent you need to fill in the column headed “Respondent’s Response” on the President’s Summary of Complaint.
- You should write “agree” in the column if you agree with what the President of the Anti-Discrimination Board has written and write “disagree” if you disagree. You should read the attached document, “How to respond to the President’s Summary of Complaint” to help you decide whether to write “agree” or “disagree” in the column.
Please also consider the following before the case conference:-
- If you want to be represented by a solicitor or agent, you need to see your solicitor or agent and ask them to come to the case conference with you. Your solicitor will need to ask for permission to represent you at the case conference. You need to file and serve a ‘Notice that an Agent is Acting for a Party’ if you want to be represented by an agent who is not a solicitor.
- You need to think about whether you want the matter to go to mediation. Many matters are resolved by mediation. A Practice Note setting out how mediations are conducted is enclosed.
What will happen at the first Case Conference?
The member will go through the President’s Summary of Complaint and discuss your responses. On the basis of your responses the Tribunal Member will write a document headed “Tribunal’s Summary of Complaint”. That document will set out
- The legal issues that are not in dispute.
- The legal issues that are in dispute.
- If you are the applicant the evidence that you will be expected to provide to prove your case and to support your claim for damages or other remedies. The evidence may be in the form of documents or may be from witnesses that you intend to call.
- f you are the respondent the evidence that you will be expected to provide to defend the claim made by the applicant. The evidence may be in the form of documents or may be from witnesses that you intend to call.
- A date for mediation if both parties consent to mediation.
- A timetable for you to file and serve statements from witnesses if mediation does not resolve the matter or you do not consent to mediation.
You will be given a copy of this document at the end of the case conference.
The Registry will arrange a second case conference date to allocation a hearing date which take place after the timetable has finished. The Member allocated to hear your case will conduct the second case conference.
Can the matter be dismissed?
The Tribunal may dismiss proceedings if:
- the applicant(s) withdraws, or
- the Tribunal considers that the proceedings are frivolous or vexatious or otherwise misconceived or lacking in substance, or
- if the applicant(s) has failed to appear in the proceedings (these can be reinstated if the applicant(s) provide a reasonable explanation for failing to appear), or
- if the Tribunal considers that there has been a want of prosecution of the proceedings, or
- if after hearing the matter it is not satisfied that the case has been made out.
Back to top
|
|
