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Commonwealth legislation
This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.
These procedural rules set out how the Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal runs reviews of decisions about defence honours and awards, and how it conducts broader inquiries. They do not create the Tribunal’s underlying powers or define which decisions can be reviewed (those are given by the Defence Act 1903 and the references in the rules to section 110T of the Act); instead they prescribe the steps, time limits and practical arrangements the Tribunal, the Department of Defence (the Department) and applicants must follow when a review or inquiry takes place (see rule 3 Note 1 and rule 22).
Key mechanical effects and who does what
Applicants must use an approved form when applying for a review or making a submission to an inquiry (rules 4, 5, 17). The Chair approves the forms and the Chair must publish them on the Tribunal website (rule 4). This creates a standardised filing requirement for applicants (rule 5, rule 17).
The Tribunal may investigate an application itself and may seek comments from other people or organisations (rule 6). The Tribunal can also send an application to the Secretary for a formal report (rule 7(1)).
When the Secretary is asked for a report, the Secretary must consult within Defence as appropriate and deliver a report and specified unclassified documents to the Tribunal within fixed timeframes: 30 working days for matters relating to a defence award and 60 working days for matters relating to a defence honour (rule 7(3)–(4)). The report must set out material factual findings, reasons, and references to evidence (rule 7(4)).
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Direct links to the current provisions in Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal Procedural Rules 2011.
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Classified documents: the Secretary must prepare a list of classified documents relevant to the review and provide that list to a Tribunal member who holds the required security clearance within 30 working days; if that Tribunal member requests copies, the Secretary must supply specified copies within 10 working days of the request (rule 7(5)). Access to classified material is therefore limited to suitably cleared Tribunal members and controlled by the Secretary (rule 7(5)).
Applicants get the Secretary’s report and have a right to respond in writing within a set period (the Tribunal must give the applicant the report within 10 working days and tell them they may respond within 20 working days) (rule 8(1)). The Tribunal may grant extensions in writing to the Secretary or the applicant (rules 7(6)–(7), 8(2)–(3)).
If the Tribunal believes the Department has not provided all relevant documents, it may direct the Secretary to produce specified copies and to search for further documents (rule 9). The Tribunal can also request documents from third parties, who must comply within the specified time (rule 10).
Hearings are public by default. The Chair or the presiding Tribunal member may order hearings to be private (or partly private) for specified reasons such as sensitivity, fairness, or national security; the Chair/presiding member can control who may be present at private hearings (rule 11(1)–(4)).
The Chair may direct that a review be conducted without a hearing, but only if both the applicant and the Secretary agree (rule 12).
Applicants may make oral submissions at hearings if they request to do so in writing. The Tribunal must agree to such a request. The Tribunal may invite others to make oral submissions and may permit oral submissions by audio or audiovisual link (rule 13(1)). Applicants may be represented, including by legal practitioners or persons with specified law qualifications; non-lawyer representatives are also permitted in some inquiry contexts (rule 13(2)–(3); rule 20(1)(c)).
The Secretary is required to use their best endeavours to assist the Tribunal (rule 14). The Tribunal must send its decision to the applicant and to the Secretary, and where the decision includes a recommendation to a Minister, the Tribunal must also give the Minister a copy (rule 15(1)–(2)).
Publication rules: decisions of reviews held wholly in public must be published on the Tribunal website, with classified material removed (rule 15A(1)). For hearings held partly or wholly in private, or reviews conducted without a hearing, the Chair decides whether to publish (rule 15A(2)–(3)). The Chair may also withhold identifying information about persons named in a decision (rule 15A(4)). Inquiry reports must be published on the Tribunal website within 20 working days after the Tribunal gives the report to the Minister; published versions must not contain classified material (rule 21(1)–(2)).
The Tribunal controls its own procedure subject to the Act and Defence Regulations, conducts proceedings with minimal formality where practicable, is not bound by the rules of evidence, and may retain and copy documents it receives (rules 22, 27). The Tribunal can summon witnesses using approved forms (rule 23) and may record proceedings, tell attendees when recording occurs, and supply electronic copies of a witness’s evidence on request (rule 25).
Purpose claims (stated in the rules) and practical trade-offs
The rules are framed to give the Tribunal prompt, standardised processes for reviewing honours and awards, to ensure the Tribunal receives relevant material from the Department, and to provide transparency where possible (see rules 4, 7, 15A, 21). Those are purpose-claims implicit in the design of the duties and timelines.
Costs and incentives: the Department (through the Secretary) bears the administrative burden of preparing detailed reports and compiling lists of classified documents within fixed timeframes (rule 7(3)–(5)). The Tribunal bears the administrative cost of running hearings and publishing decisions where required (rules 15A, 21). Applicants face a compliance cost in using approved forms and meeting filing requirements (rules 4, 5, 17). Third parties required to produce documents also incur compliance costs (rule 10).
Trade-offs and implementation risks: the rules balance transparency (public hearings and publishing decisions, rules 11 and 15A) with confidentiality and security (private hearings, restricted access to classified documents, rules 11(3), 7(5)). Handling classified material introduces implementation friction: only cleared Tribunal members may access classified lists and documents, which can limit who can review that material and may delay access (rule 7(5)). Fixed reporting deadlines (30/60 working days) create time pressure on the Department; the Tribunal can grant extensions, but doing so modifies the speed promised by the rules (rules 7(6)–(7)).
Discretion and decision points: the Chair and presiding Tribunal members have multiple discretions that shape outcomes — approving forms (rule 4), directing private hearings (rule 11), deciding on publication where hearings were not wholly public (rule 15A), and directing a review to proceed without a hearing only with agreement (rule 12). That discretion concentrates operational choice in Tribunal leadership.
Concentrated benefits, diffuse costs and possible behavioural effects
Beneficiaries: applicants receive a formal review process, access to the Department’s unclassified documents, and an opportunity to respond to the Department’s report (rules 7(4), 8). Tribunal members with security clearances gain access to classified materials necessary for adjudication (rule 7(5)).
Bearers of cost: the Department (Secretary) bears the main administrative cost of producing reports and assembling classified-document lists on set timelines (rule 7). Third parties required to provide documents bear compliance costs (rule 10). The Tribunal and its Chair take on administrative and publication choices.
Behavioural effects: applicants may consent to reviews without hearings (rule 12), which can reduce cost and time for all parties. The availability of oral submissions and representation (rule 13) shapes how applicants present cases. The rules’ publication regime encourages transparency for public hearings but allows confidentiality for sensitive matters (rule 15A).
Overall mechanical summary