5Additional functions

5 Additional functions

(1) For the purposes of paragraph 52(1)(c) of the Act, the CEO has the function of assessing whether an application made under Division 2, 3 or 6 of Part 3 of the Act meets the requirements of s 37 of the Act and any requirement prescribed under these rules for the purposes of that section.

(1A) The CEO may take such steps as are required to decide whether an application meets those requirements, including, but not limited to, convening a pre-application meeting.

(2) If an application does not meet the requirements of the Act and the rules, the CEO is not required to accept the application.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph 52(1)(c) of the Act, the CEO has the function of the procedural management of any dispute before a tribunal member is appointed to deal with it (the procedural management function).

(4) Without limiting the scope of the procedural management function, it may include any of the following:

(a) convening a preliminary conference and requiring the parties to the dispute to attend;

(b) requiring parties to make reasonable attempts to narrow the issues in dispute;

(c) determining a provisional timetable for the conduct of the proceedings by the Tribunal;

(d) consulting with the parties about which member, or members of the Tribunal are to be appointed to deal with the dispute;

(e) consulting with the parties about the estimated cost of the proceedings and the proposed apportionment of that cost;

(ea) consulting with the parties as to whether the dispute will be resolved through arbitration, mediation, conciliation or case appraisal;

(eb) consulting with the parties about the attendance of any representative or support person in Tribunal proceedings;

(f) where the application is for arbitration, any of the following:

(i) requiring the parties to identify proposed witnesses, and expert evidence the parties may wish to bring forward in an arbitration hearing;

(ii) requiring the parties to specify the recipient and type of notice (whether for the production of documents or things, or appearance of a witness) the party wishes to request the Tribunal to issue under section 42 of the Act;

(iii) consulting with the parties about how many members will constitute the Tribunal.

(5) Where a member has been appointed to deal with a dispute, nothing in subsection (3) or (4) prevents the CEO from assisting that member with the procedural management of the dispute.

(6) In this section, a reference to a dispute is a reference to a dispute about which an application has been made to the Tribunal