Federal Circuit Court

Administrative Appeal Tribunal: The tribunal conducts merits review of administrative decision made by the government departments. Merits review is an administrative reconsideration of departmental decisions. During the appeal process, the tribunal will have a fresh look at your application and assess it against all criteria applicable. We review decisions made by Australian Government ministers, departments and agencies and, in limited circumstances, decisions made by state government and non-government bodies.

AAT is not always the first step in having a decision reviewed. In some cases, we cannot review a decision until there has been an internal review of the primary decision or review by a specialist body like the Veterans’ Review Board.

AAT also conduct a second review of certain decisions that have been reviewed in our Social Services & Child Support Division. A second review is conducted in our General Division.

Federal Circuit Court: The court will consider only Error of Law made by the Department or tribunal during the decision-making process. We will be providing you with tailored legal advice that suits your case. The court is an independent federal court under the Australian Constitution. The jurisdiction of the Federal Circuit Court includes family law and child support, administrative law, admiralty law, bankruptcy, copyright, human rights, industrial law, migration, privacy and trade practices. The court shares those jurisdictions with the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Court of Australia. The objective of the Federal Magistrates Court is to provide a simpler and more accessible alternative to litigation in the superior courts and to relieve the workload of those courts.