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NDIS correspondence: Notification of Decision - FOI 25/26-0003

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Our reference: FOI 25/26-0003 (LEXD 1080)

GPO Box 700 Canberra ACT 2601 1800 800 110 10 September 2025 ndis.gov.au

David Wright Right to Know

By email: foi+request-13352-8a7f133e@righttoknow.org.au

Dear David Wright

Freedom of Information request — Notification of Decision

Thank you for your correspondence of 1 July 2025, in which you requested access to documents held by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).

The purpose of this letter is to provide you with a decision on your request.

Scope of your request

You have requested access to the following documents:

“Dear National Disability Insurance Agency,

Please provide the following information about all law firms engaged by the NDIA in the 2024-2025 financial year for matters to which the NDIA was a Respondent at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) / Administrative Review Tribunal (ART):

  1. A list of all law firms engaged.

  2. The number of AAT/ART matters each law firm was engaged for.

  3. The total of all payments made by the NDIA to each of these law firms, giving the total figure paid to each law firm and also a combined total figure of all payments.

Yours faithfully,

David Wright“

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Extension of time

The FOI Act provides 30 calendar days for the processing of an FOI request after it is received. As your valid FOI request was received on 1 July 2025, the original due date for your request was 31 July 2025.

On 23 July 2025, you agreed to a 30-day extension of time under section 15AA of the FOI Act, making 30 August 2025 the new date to provide you with a decision on access.

We have been experiencing processing delays and were not able to provide you with our decision by the due date. I sincerely apologise for the delay in releasing this decision to you and thank you for your patience while we progressed your application. As this is a deemed decision, we have submitted an application to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) seeking a 10-day extension to process the request under section 15AC of the FOI Act. On 9 September 2025, the OAIC granted our request for further time under s 15AC of the FOI Act, making the new date for decision 10 September 2025.

Decision on access to documents

I am authorised to make decisions under section 23(1) of the FOI Act. My decision on your request and the reasons for my decision are set out below.

Section 17(1)(c)(i) of the FOI Act provides that, in circumstances where an agency does not hold a document containing the information sought in a discrete form, an agency can produce a written document containing the requested information, if it can do so by using a computer or other equipment that is ordinarily available for retrieving or collating stored information. We have been able to produce one document containing the information you requested. I have, therefore, treated your request as if it were a request for access to this document in accordance with section 17(1)(c) of the FOI Act.

I have decided to grant access to this document in full.

The document was identified by consulting relevant staff in the NDIA’s Legal Operations Team, who conducted searches of the Agency’s systems, using all reasonable search terms that could return data/information relevant to your request.

The FOI Act states that, in making a decision on a request, I must consider the FOI Guidelines issued by the Information Commissioner pursuant to section 93A of the FOI Act. According to the FOI Guidelines, the FOI Act serves as the legislative foundation for open government, facilitating and promoting public access to information. I believe that providing

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access to this document aligns with the objects of the FOI Act, by providing for a right of access to documents held by the Government of the Commonwealth.

In reaching my decision, I took the following into account:

  • your correspondence outlining the scope of your request
  • the nature and content of the documents falling within the scope of your request
  • the provisions of the FOI Act including section 3 (general objects of the Act), section 11 (Right of access), section 11A (Access to documents on request) and section 17 (Requests involving use of computer etc).
  • the FOI Guidelines published under section 93A of the FOI Act
  • consultation with relevant NDIA staff
  • the NDIA’s operating environment and functions.

Release of documents

The document for release, as referred to in the Schedule of Documents at Attachment A, is enclosed.

Rights of review

Your rights to seek a review of my decision, or lodge a complaint, are set out at Attachment B.

Should you have any enquiries concerning this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me by email at foi@ndis.gov.au.

Yours sincerely

Robert [RIA 421] Senior Freedom of Information Officer Information Release, Privacy and Legal Operations Branch Reviews and Information Release Division

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Attachment A

Schedule of Documents for FOI 25/26-0003

Document number Page number Description Access Decision Comments
1 1-2 Data about all law firms engaged by the NDIA for matters to which the NDIA was a Respondent at the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART)

Date range: Financial year 2024-2025		 FULL ACCESS Document created under section 17 of the FOI Act

Delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency

Attachment B

Your review rights

Internal Review

The FOI Act gives you the right to apply for an internal review of this decision. The review will be conducted by a different person to the person who made the original decision.

If you wish to seek an internal review of the decision, you must apply for the review, in writing, within 30 days of receipt of this letter.

No particular form is required for an application for internal review, but to assist the review process, you should clearly outline your grounds for review (that is, the reasons why you disagree with the decision). Applications for internal review can be lodged by email to foi@ndis.gov.au or sent by post to:

Freedom of Information Section Information Release, Privacy and Legal Operations Branch Reviews and Information Release Division GPO Box 700 CANBERRA ACT 2601

Review by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner

The FOI Act gives you the right to apply to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) to seek a review of this decision.

If you wish to have the decision reviewed by the OAIC, you may apply for the review, in writing, or by using the online merits review form available on OAIC’s website via: OAIC Web Form, within 60 days of receipt of this letter.

Applications for review can be lodged with the OAIC in the following ways:

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Complaints to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner or the Commonwealth Ombudsman

You may complain to either the Commonwealth Ombudsman or the OAIC about actions taken by the NDIA in relation to your request. The Ombudsman will consult with the OAIC before investigating a complaint about the handling of an FOI request.

Your complaint to the OAIC can be directed to the contact details identified above. Your complaint to the Ombudsman can be directed to:

Your complaint should be in writing and should set out the grounds on which it is considered that the actions taken in relation to the request should be investigated.

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