National Disability Insurance Scheme Appeals

Legal assistance service

The Department of Social Services has made funding (scheme legal funds) available for people living with disability to apply for free legal advice through an ART Outreach Legal Advice service and assistance about their participation in the NDIS.

Legal assistance is provided by lawyers in the Civil Law Division of the Legal Services Commission of South Australia.

The legal assistance is intended for NDIS applicants who are in dispute with the National Disability Insurance Agency (Agency) where the issues involved are significant enough to warrant the involvement of experienced lawyers.

A dispute may be about a person’s eligibility to start receiving a benefit under the NDIS, or it may concern an Agency decision which has adversely affected an existing NDIS plan or benefit.

These disputes are determined in the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) (previously known as the Administrative Appeals Tribunal).

The process for applying for legal assistance is set out below.

Application process

Before applying for legal assistance, you must first have had an outreach advice appointment. Call the ART on 1800 228 333 to request referral to the outreach legal advice service.

At the appointment, a Legal Services lawyer will explore the nature of the dispute with you and whether an application for continuing legal assistance with your appeal would be worthwhile.

To engage with the legal assistance service you will need to complete and sign an Application for NDIS Appeals Legal Services (fillable PDF download, 814 KB) (also available via the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing website) and provide all the requested documents. 

You will need to provide a copy of the T-Documents with your application. (T-Documents are “Tribunal Documents” prepared by the Agency, and usually filed within 28 days of the appeal application being lodged.)

Applications may be submitted by:

• email to lsc.correspondence@lsc.sa.gov.au

or

• post to GPO Box 1718, Adelaide SA 5001

Assessment

Assessment of applications includes the following considerations:

• Has an appeal been appropriately lodged with the ART, within jurisdiction, against a decision of the NDIA?
• Do the matters in dispute raise complex or novel legal issues?
• Is the provision of legal representation likely to lead to a wider community benefit?
• Are there sufficient scheme legal funds to cover the legal costs of the application?
• Does Legal Services currently have the capacity to assist?
• Is the applicant experiencing disadvantage in the appeal process and likely to realise a substantial benefit from legal representation?
• Does the application have substantial merit?

Decision

Where possible, applications for legal assistance under the National Disability Insurance Scheme will be determined within 30 days of receipt of the application and the supporting documents.

When approved, applications may be funded to certain stages of ART proceedings, with regular reviews.

Refusals

Applicants who are unsuccessful in their application for funding may request a reconsideration of the decision in writing and within 14 days of the decision.

Applications for reconsideration will be assessed by a Legal Services officer who was not involved in the original decision.

Where possible reconsiderations are determined within 30 days of a written request.