Edition No.73

Welcome

In this edition I can confirm that the rule 67 amendments to introduce a 500-page limit on supporting material for certain initiating applications and replies will commence on Monday 25 November 2024. This will align with our Phase 3 Pathway enhancements which will launch on the same day. 

I would like to thank the more than 300 of you who came along to our briefing session last week which provided a refresher on the rule amendments and how they will work in Pathway. You can find a link to a recording of the webinar below and we will soon publish FAQs on our website. We will also host a number of learning sessions next month to ensure tribunal users are prepared for the change.

I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of the late Dr Geoff Stubbs, one of the Commission’s long-term medical assessors. Dr Stubbs will be greatly missed.

Finally, the Commission’s end-of-year shutdown arrangements are included for your information.

Regards, 

Judge Gerard Phillips
President

The 500-page limit will commence on Monday 25 November 2024

The 500-page limit on supporting documents accompanying initiating applications and replies in certain dispute types will commence operation on Monday 25 November 2024. On that day, the amendments to rule 67, updates to Procedural Direction PIC 3 and the new Procedural Direction PIC 12 that support the limit will commence and the enhancements to the Pathway platform needed to administer it will be launched. These changes have been designed to make the process as easy as possible for all tribunal users.  

The introduction of the 500-page limit will help the Commission to meet our statutory mandate to deal with the real issues in proceedings justly, quickly, cost effectively and with little formality. 

Remember, there will be no limit on material over 500 pages, provided it relates to the real issues in the dispute. Parties will be able to make an application to lodge additional documents and must show how the additional material relates to the “real issues in the proceedings” as contemplated in the Guiding Principle, s 42 of the Personal Injury Commission Act 2020. 

If an initial application or reply is lodged with more than 500 pages of supporting material without an Application to Lodge Additional Documents, it will be rejected. 

It is important that practitioners start to plan for this change. You can find the draft rule, procedural directions and other helpful material on our dedicated website page. A recording of our initial webinar for legal practitioners and insurers from last week is also available to view here (please use password: 500pageWebinarOct2024 ).

Further briefing sessions about the page limit and how it will be administered in the Pathway Portal will be held in mid-November. Invitations will be extended to Pathway Portal users soon. Please take up this opportunity to learn how the page limit will be applied and what you will need to do differently from 25 November.

Other Pathway Portal enhancements will launch on 25 November

In addition to the changes needed to the Pathway Portal to support the 500-page limit, the Commission is developing further enhancements to the Portal that will launch at the same time. These are focused on further harmonising processes across jurisdictions and adding certain form types that are currently only available offline into the Portal. 

Several forms that are currently motor accidents or workers compensation specific will be replaced by new non-jurisdictional forms that will be available in the Portal. We will provide more information on these closer to the go-live date.

The other main enhancement will be the addition of a new Submissions & Correspondence button for motor accidents matters that will be used for sharing correspondence documents with the Commission. This function is currently used successfully for workers compensation matters. Motor accidents users will no longer be able to attach documents via the Messages function and will use the new button instead. This will harmonise the process across jurisdictions and mean that all documents that need to be registered will be entering the Commission via our Registry team. 

These changes will be discussed, along with the 500-page limit changes in briefing sessions that will be held in mid-November.

In Memoriam - Dr Geoff Stubbs

It was with great sadness that the Commission learnt of the recent sudden passing of long-time Medical Assessor Dr Geoff Stubbs. Dr Stubbs was born in Melbourne in 1947, graduating with Honours in Medicine at the University of Sydney in 1972. He became a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and the Australian Orthopaedics Association and was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine. Dr Stubbs worked as a consultant in General Orthopaedics in Canberra. He lectured at the ANU Medical School, held appointments at Canberra Hospital and Calvary Hospital, and was a regular author of medical papers and articles. 

Dr Stubbs commenced with the Commission’s predecessor organisations in January 2011 and has assessed hundreds, if not thousands, of injured claimants. His work with the Commission was a significant act of public service for the people of NSW and he will be missed by the staff and members he worked with. A very fine doctor and fellow who has left a great mark on this jurisdiction. 

Dr Stubbs is survived by his three children and four grandchildren, who are in our thoughts and prayers at this sad time.

End-of-year shutdown

The Commission’s operations will completely close between Monday 23 December 2024 and Friday 3 January 2025 with operations to resume on Monday 6 January 2025. 

Key dates to note:

• The last official sitting day of the Commission is Friday 13 December 2024. However, matters may be listed by exception with Division Head approval during the week of 16 December 2024.
• The Commission’s offices will close at 4.30pm on Friday 20 December 2024.
• There will be no medical assessments or preliminary conferences conducted after Friday 20 December 2024.
• In the Workers Compensation Division, there will be no medical assessment certificates, certificates of determination, consent orders, mediation certificates and medical appeal panel certificates issued between Monday 23 December 2024 and Friday 3 January 2025.
• In the Motor Accidents Division, there will be no medical assessment certificates, medical review panel certificates and certificates/statements of reasons issued between Monday 23 December 2024 and Friday 3 January 2025.

Operations will recommence as follows:

• The Commission's offices will reopen at 8:30am on Monday 6 January 2025.
• Medical assessments will recommence on Monday 6 January 2025.
• Decisions and certificates will be issued from Monday 6 January 2025.
• Preliminary conferences, conciliation/arbitrations, assessment conferences and mediations will recommence on Monday 13 January 2025.

Thanks to the introduction of the Pathway Portal, parties will still be able to submit material via the portal during the shutdown including all applications, associated documents, and appeals. Pathway platform support will still be available during the shutdown.  

Anything filed during the shutdown period that is time-sensitive, such as appeals, will be received by the Commission at the time it is entered into the system or the next working day in accordance with rule 26 of the Personal Injury Commission Rules 2021.

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