The Review of Decision process
A Review of Decision is a statutory process defined by the Social Security Act. A person affected by an MSD decision can apply under the Act to MSD for a review of that decision. The usual steps are:
- A person submits to MSD an Application for a Review of Decision as allowed in the Act.
- MSD formally acknowledges receipt of the application.
- MSD's Review of Decision (ROD) Team issues a report attaching the relevant documents, stating MSD's case, and summarizing the documents in a "Summary of Facts". This report provides the evidence and legal matters to be considered by the Benefits Review Committee (BRC).
- The formal BRC hearing.
- The BRC issues its report including findings and decision to confirm, vary or revoke the MSD decision under review.
Parliament actually made the Social Security Act very robust.
First a person can apply for an internal MSD review of an MSD decision. This review is organized by the Review of Decision (ROD) Team and conducted by a Benefits Review Committee (BRC). The committee is populated by a majority of MSD staff and makes decisions by majority vote.
The ROD Team prepared a "Report to the Benefits Review Committee" containing MSD's case, a summary of relevant documents, and the documents themselves attached as "appendixes". This report is supposed to contain all the documentation a BRC needs to decide the review.
Once a BRC decide to confirm, vary or revoke the MSD decision under review, it prepares then issues its "Report of the Benefits Review Committee". This is the statutory report required under the Act.
Second, a person can appeal a BRC decision to the Social Security Appeal Authority (SSAA), also defined in the Social Security Act. The SSAA, tasked with being independent and taking a fresh look, rehears the BRC hearing.
The person can then appeal the SSAA decision, on matters of law, to the High Court and by leave, higher courts.
Fake reviews
My MSD case has experienced two fake reviews the first starting 17 July 2017, and the second, 18 November 2025.
Here, "fake" means MSD created an application for review in a person's name (my name) without their knowledge or authorization then continued with the review against their wishes.
In other words, MSD, in official statutory documents, stated that a certain person had submitted an application for review but knew this to be untrue, hence the review was unlawful - not a review under the Social Security Act.
The fraud being that MSD knows it is not a review under the Act but conducts it as though it is, including stating in official documents that a certain person applied for the review when MSD knows this is untrue.