Disputes & Statutory Schemes

“What are we entitled to, and what happens when a decision goes against us?”

Entitlements, claims, and the decisions that follow

Much of our work sits where government decision-making meets statutory entitlements. We advise on what a scheme provides, prepare and lodge claims under it, and take contested decisions to review when they are wrong. That means acting on the entitlement, not only advising that it exists.

What we do

Legal entitlements and statutory compensation schemes: advice on entitlements, and applications prepared and lodged, including under the Victims Rights and Support Act 2013 (NSW) and its predecessor, and the National Redress Scheme.
Administrative law: review of government decision-making, including judicial review in the Supreme Court and the NSW Court of Appeal, and statutory review in NCAT.
Statutory interpretation: of schemes and legislation, at the level of formality the matter requires.
Security of payment: statutory payment claims and adjudications under the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW), and construction disputes, supported by a partner's engineering background.
Costs disputes: costs assessment under the statutory scheme, and the disputes that follow from it.
Government decision-making and information access: GIPA applications and decisions, governance, and records that must withstand review by the Information and Privacy Commission, the Ombudsman or a court.

What you get

Advice on what the scheme actually provides, grounded in the legislation and in your records.
Applications prepared and lodged, not just advice on what you could do.
A partner running the matter from start to finish.
Clear advice on prospects, cost and next steps before we commit you to a course.
Advice structured to support a claim of legal professional privilege where that is the purpose of the work.

Starting from the records

Statutory entitlements and administrative decisions are usually decided on a file. We come to these matters from the records first, the same capability we bring to legal audits, so the claim or the challenge is built on what the documents actually show. See eDiscovery & Chronologies.

Who it's for

Government agencies and statutory bodies; organisations delivering government contracts; businesses in a dispute about a statutory entitlement or payment; and the organisations and advisers that support people with statutory entitlements.

Common questions

Which schemes do you work in?

We work across state and federal statutory compensation and entitlement schemes. Ask us about your scheme and we'll tell you plainly whether it's work we take on.

Do you prepare the application, or just advise?

We prepare and lodge applications where we're instructed to. We'll tell you early what the entitlement looks like and what's needed to claim it.

Do you brief counsel?

We appear in NCAT, and we have run judicial review to the NSW Court of Appeal. Where a matter warrants it we brief counsel, selected for expertise and value for money, and engaged at cost with your prior approval.

Will our advice be privileged?

We structure the engagement to support a claim of privilege, but whether it applies depends on why the work is done and how the advice is used. We'll discuss this before we start.

How is it priced?

We give you rates and an estimate before we start, and we'll tell you if the cost stops making sense against what's at stake.

Speak with a partner

Tell us what's happened and what you need, or call us if it's urgent.

Please don't include confidential details or attach documents. We'll run a conflict check before we discuss specifics.