30 September 2025
FOI ref: 2025/1730
Mae
By email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Mae,
Notice of Decision for Freedom of Information Request no. 2025/1730 The purpose of this letter is to give you a decision about access to documents that you have
requested under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).
Summary
I am an officer authorised under section 23(1) of the FOI Act to make decisions in relation to
FOI requests.
You lodged an FOI request on 31 August 2025 for access to
I seek access to documents containing statistical information regarding the
performance of General Member Stewart Fenwick in National Disability Insurance
Agency (NDIA) review cases. I am requesting a summary of the data, not individual
case files, and kindly ask that all personal information of third parties be de-identified.
The specific documents and information I am requesting are:
1. A year-on-year breakdown, from the last 10 years to the present, of the
number of NDIS review cases finalised by General Member Stewart Fenwick.
2. Of these cases, a breakdown by year showing the number and percentage of
outcomes that were:
a. Favorable to the applicant (e.g., set aside, varied in the applicant's
favour).
b. Unfavorable to the applicant (e.g., affirmed).
3. The average number of days it took for a final decision to be made in an NDIS
review case by General Member Stewart Fenwick, on a year-by-year basis.
The calculation should be from the date the case was received by the Tribunal
to the date of the final outcome.
Section 17 of the FOI Act
I have consulted the Tribunal’s Data Management team who is responsible for Tribunal
reporting. They have collated the requested data using existing reporting tools. I have
therefore processed your request in accordance with section 17 of the FOI Act. Section 17
enables agencies to process a request if the requested information does not already exist in
a discrete document and instead, can be produced in a report designed to contain the
information.
The following document has been produced under s 17 in response to your request:
•
NDIS Finalisations of Stewart Fenwick from February 2019 - September 2025
The attached document contains a record of the statistical data regarding General Member
Stewart Fenwick from the year of appointment to the date of FOI request, specifically for the
breakdown as mentioned in the above scope of request. In terms of outcomes shown in the
report, I note that we have interpreted favourable outcomes as follows:
• Consent-remitted,
• consent-set aside,
• heard and remitted and
• heard and set aside.
For unfavourable outcomes, this has been interpreted as:
• application withdrawn,
• consent-dismissed,
• heard and affirmed,
• dismissed and
• no jurisdiction.
In relation to the column titled, ‘Consent-varied’ these figures relate to cases where both
parties have come to a mutual consent. These cases have been shown as a separate
statistic.
Decision
I have decided to grant full access to the document.
In making my decision, I have taken the following into account:
• the content of the documents that fall within the scope of your request;
• the FOI Act, specifically section 17; and
• the guidelines issued by the Australian Information Commissioner under s 93A of the
FOI Act (
FOI Guidelines).
Your review rights Information about how you can apply for a review of this decision or complain about how we
have dealt with this matter is set out in the attached fact sheet, FOI 2.
If you have any questions about this decision, please contact me at
xxx@xxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely,
Tracy L
Authorised FOI Officer (APS 6)
Attachments FOI 2 – Information about reviews and complaints under the Freedom of Information Act
Level 6, 83 Clarence Street
Sydney NSW 2000
GPO Box 9955 Sydney NSW 2001
Information about reviews and complaints under the
Freedom of Information Act
What should I do prior to applying for internal review or contacting the Office of
the Australian Information Commissioner? Before you apply for an internal review or contact the Office of the Australian Information
Commissioner, we recommend that you telephone the officer who made the FOI decision. It is
often possible to resolve concerns or answer your questions using this approach and, if not,
the officer will be able to assist you in applying for review.
How do I apply for internal review to the AAT? You can apply to us for an internal review of the FOI decision. The application for internal
review must be made within 30 days or such further period as we allow, after the day the
decision is notified to you. To apply for an internal review you must do so in writing. You may
also wish to explain why you are not satisfied with the decision. A different and more senior
officer authorised under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act) will conduct the
internal review and make a new decision within 30 days after receipt of your application.
If you have already applied for internal review and want to seek a further review of that decision,
you will need to apply to the Australian Information Commissioner.
How do I apply for review to the Australian Information Commissioner? You may also apply directly to the Australian Information Commissioner for review of the FOI
decision. The application for review must be made within 60 days after the day notice of the
decision was given. An application for review must be in writing, include details of how notices
in relation to the review are to be sent to you and include a copy of the decision. You may also
wish to explain why you are not satisfied with the decision. An online application form is
available on the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s website found here:
Information Commissioner Review Application form. What if I want to make a complaint about the handling of a Freedom of
Information request? If you have a complaint about the way in which we have processed your request for access
under the FOI Act you can ask the Australian Information Commissioner to investigate. An
online complaint form is available on the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s
website, found her
e FOI Complaint Form. Where can I find further information or contact details for the Office of the
Australian Information Commissioner? Further information is available on the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s
website
at www.oaic.gov.au and you can contact the office on 1300 363 992 or by email at
xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx..
FOI 2 (April 2024)
