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Document 1
FOIREQ18/00174   001
From:
Vivian Yue
To:
"xxxxxxxxxxx.xxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx"
Subject:
MR18/00831 - Notice of request for IC review and Preliminary Inquiries [SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
Date:
Thursday, 1 November 2018 11:39:00 AM
Attachments:
FW IC Review - Deemed Refusal of DVA FOI 24561 - Jan - May 2018 CLUCCS referrals
SECUNCLASSIFIED.msg
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Our reference: MR18/00831
Your reference: IR 24561
The FOI Contact Officer
Sent by email: xxxxxxxxxxx.xxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx
 
 
Notice of request for IC review and Preliminary Inquiries under s
54V
Dear Sir/Madam
Ms Verity Pane has requested that the Information Commissioner review of a deemed decision by
the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) of 18 October 2018, to refuse access to documents under
the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth).
 
I attach a copy of the application for review.
 
Preliminary Inquiries (s 54V)
 
I note it appears that Ms Panes’s FOI request is deemed to have been refused pursuant to s 15AC.
However, DVA retains an obligation to provide Ms Pane with a substantive decision as soon as
practicable.
 
Pursuant to s 54V, to assist the OAIC in progressing Ms Panes’s IC review please provide:
 
·         An explanation with regards to the present status of Ms Pane’s request
·         If the request is not yet finalised - an estimated date for its completion.
·         If the Department has provided a statement of reasons to the applicant, please forward a
copy to the OAIC.
Please provide a response to this email by close of business 8 November 2018
 
Yours sincerely
 
O A I C logo
  Vivian Yue  |  Review Officer
Freedom of Information
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001  |  oaic.gov.au
+61 2 9284 9797  |   xxxxxx.xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
|
|
|  
Subscribe to OAICnet newsletter
 




Document 2
FOIREQ18/00174   002
From:
FOIDR
To:
"Verity Pane"
Subject:
RE: IC Review - Deemed Refusal of DVA FOI 24561 - Jan - May 2018 CLU/CCS referrals
[SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
Date:
Thursday, 1 November 2018 11:46:00 AM
Attachments:
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OAIC reference: MR18/00831
Department reference: FOI 24561
 
Dear Mr Pane
 
Your IC review application about an FOI decision by the Department of
Veterans’ Affairs (FOI 24561)
 
Thank you for your correspondence seeking to lodge an IC review application with the Office of
the Australian Information Commissioner (the OAIC) about the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
 
Please note:
 
Your application will be assessed and you will be advised by an IC review officer of the next
steps.
 
Your IC review application will be shared with the Department as part of the IC review
process unless you have specifically requested otherwise.
 
If your circumstances change, or your request has been resolved directly with the
Department, please advise us by email as soon as practicable.
 
Should you wish to follow up on this matter, please contact the OAIC enquiries line on 1300 363
992 or email xxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx and quote the reference number at the top of this email.
 
Kind regards
 
O A I C logo
  Vivian Yue  |  Review Officer
Freedom of Information
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001  |  oaic.gov.au
+61 2 9284 9797  |   xxxxxx.xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
|
|
|  
Subscribe to OAICnet newsletter
 
 
 
 
 
From: Verity Pane s 22
 
Sent: Thursday, 1 November 2018 12:44 AM
To: Enquiries <xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx>
Subject: Fwd: IC Review - Deemed Refusal of DVA FOI 24561 - Jan - May 2018 CLU/CCS referrals
 
Attn OAIC,
FOIREQ18/00174   003
 
Still waiting for registration here.
 
Further, DVA has since claimed the FOI has been withdrawn, based on the backdated
charges notice provided to the address for notices after the FOI received a deemed
decision.
 
This, of course, does not have any legitimacy and is ultra vires. The FOI has not been
withdrawn and remains a deemed refusal.
 
The fact that the OAIC has not registered this IC Review suggested that yet again this
chain of events is yet another example where DVA and the OAIC have been scheming
behind closed doors to subvert the FOI Act and bin the IC Review in bad faith.
 
Why is it that the OAIC has corrupted its purpose as a regulator, to be just another fox in
the hen house?
 
Verity Pane
From: Verity Pane s 22
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2018 7:02 pm
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
Subject: IC Review - Deemed Refusal of DVA FOI 24561 - Jan - May 2018 CLU/CCS referrals
 
Attn OAIC,
 
You know, if you stopped giving DVA reasons to ignore FOI law, you wouldn’t be getting
these IC Reviews in the first place. Really you are letting DVA dump its work on you, but
hey these are the games you choose to play.
 
This one is slightly more unusual - DVA pulling out a new dirty trick. This time,
backdated charges notices never sent, after the FOI goes deemed refusal (when no such
charges can apply).
 
This history of this FOI is here:
https://www.righttoknow.org.au/request/jan_2018_may_2018_cluccs_referra
 
The FOI went deemed refusal 5 days ago. I chased up DVA on the day of deemed refusal.
It ignored the correspondence. I chased up again today, and now it has attempted to put a
backdated charges notice on the FOI, claiming it had been sent before (but if it had been, it
would have been published on the FOI page).
FOIREQ18/00174   004
 
Every time an FOI is made on Right to Know, the address for notices is generated, with a
unique Right to Know email address (therefore not a personal email address, and I don’t
correspond with DVA myself, so they wouldn’t even know my UoW email address).
 
There has been no correspondence from DVA about that FOI since 19 September 2018 (s
15(5)(a) acknowledgement) until today for this FOI, as evidenced by the Right to Know
chronology of correspondence.
 
I have not received nor being advised by DVA of any charges notice until today, and I
have checked my spam folder to confirm. Either DVA is outright lying or failed to give
notice by deliberately sending to the wrong person or invalid address for notices.
 
The law is clear here, where an address for notices is given in respect of an FOI, notices
must be given to that address, and it is well covered by Regs and the Guidelines that the
consequences of s 15(5)(b) expiry deemed refusal is no charges can be levied.
 
DVA need to stop being little corrupt dickheads, and get on with it. This is just another
case where the OAIC needs to say enough to DVA, to tell them stop making more
unnecessary work for everyone, and tell DVA it needs to get on with the FOI and do it
honestly.
 
Verity Pane
 
 
 
Document 3
FOIREQ18/00174   005
MR18/00831
McKenna, Megan
15-Nov-2018 1:40 PM
Title
Pane, Verity | DVA - Department of Veterans' Affairs
Receipt Details
File Type:
Access Refusal
Received Date:
23-Oct-2018 12:00 AM
Case Type:
To be Determined
Received By:
Yue, Vivian
How Received:
Registered Date:
26-Oct-2018 2:01 PM
Owned By:
Allocation - Deemed 
Registered By:
Allocation - Deemed 
Decisions - FOI
Decisions - FOI
Case Details
Stage:
Triage
How Received:
Email
Validation:
Not validated
Sensitivity:
Not sensitive
File Security:
UNCLASSIFIED
Agency Reference 
FOI 24561
Number:
Primary Client Group:
Individual
Parent Case Entity 
IC Review
Code:
Respondent Client 
Agency
Group:
Case PrimaryPerson:
Pane, Verity
Case Respondent:
DVA - Department of Veterans' Affairs
Assessor Note:
PIs due 23 Nov
Retention Class:
OAIC RA 61986 (D2)
Case Parties - 2
Applicant Client:
Pane, Verity
Respondent Client:
DVA - Department of Veterans' Affairs
Summary
Summary
A requested documents under s 17, on the number of DVA clients, by ages group, who were referred to 
SPOC management between Jan and May 2017. 
Date requested: 18 September 2018
Deemed on: 18 October 2018
Actions - 10 (1 Open, 9 Completed)
Action
Owner
Due
Completed
Record case details 
Yue, Vivian
30-Oct-2018
26-Oct-2018
and attach docs (MR 
REG)
Send 
Yue, Vivian
30-Oct-2018
01-Nov-2018
Acknowledgement 
Letter (MR REG)
Move to Triage basket 
Yue, Vivian
29-Oct-2018
26-Oct-2018
(MR REG)
Allocate to Triage 
Triage - FOI
29-Oct-2018
26-Oct-2018, Yue, Vivian
Officer (MR TR)
Conduct Triage (MR 
Yue, Vivian
29-Oct-2018
26-Oct-2018: Further Info
TR)
Page 1 of 2
15/11/2018
FOIREQ18/00174   006
Seek Further 
Triage - FOI
29-Oct-2018
01-Nov-2018, Yue, Vivian
Information (MR TR)
Conduct Triage (MR 
Triage - FOI
02-Nov-2018
01-Nov-2018, Yue, Vivian: Further Info
TR)
Seek Further 
Triage - FOI
02-Nov-2018
01-Nov-2018, Yue, Vivian
Information (MR TR)
Conduct Triage (MR 
Triage - FOI
02-Nov-2018
01-Nov-2018, Yue, Vivian: Further Info
TR)
Seek Further 
Allocation -
02-Nov-2018
Information (MR TR)
Deemed 
Decisions - FOI
Documents - 6
Title
Date Added
By
FW: IC Review - Deemed Refusal of DVA FOI 
24-Oct-2018 9:01 AM
Yue, Vivian
24561 - Jan - May 2018 CLU/CCS referrals 
[SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
FW: IC Review - Deemed Refusal of DVA FOI 
01-Nov-2018 9:29 AM
Yue, Vivian
24561 - Jan - May 2018 CLU/CCS referrals 
[SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
MR18/00831 - Notice of request for IC review and 
01-Nov-2018 11:39 AM
Yue, Vivian
Preliminary Inquiries [SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
RE: IC Review - Deemed Refusal of DVA FOI 
01-Nov-2018 11:46 AM
Yue, Vivian
24561 - Jan - May 2018 CLU/CCS referrals 
[SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
RE: MR18/00831 - Notice of request for IC review 
07-Nov-2018 4:14 PM
Yue, Vivian
and Preliminary Inquiries [DLM=For-Official-Use-
Only]
RE: MR18/00831 - Notice of request for IC review 
12-Nov-2018 10:11 AM
Yue, Vivian
and Preliminary Inquiries [DLM=For-Official-Use-
Only]
Page 2 of 2
15/11/2018