Kia ora koutou,

Under the **Official Information Act 1982**, I request machine-readable information about ACC’s **expenditure on external legal services** used to defend, manage or represent ACC in dispute processes (e.g., **ICRA, Fairway, District Court/High Court** matters) for the five most recent financial years **2020/21–2024/25**.

This request focuses on information **held in ACC’s finance/ERP systems** and related procurement records. It is made in the **public interest** to improve transparency around representation in claimant disputes and cost-effectiveness of external legal use. See ACC’s reported claims-handling costs ($**662m** in 2023/24) and the “consulting and other professional services” line item, which indicate relevant categories exist within ACC’s accounts.

Part A — Finance/ERP data extract (CSV under s 16)

Please provide a **CSV export** from ACC’s finance/ERP for the period **2020/21–2024/25** containing **all payments to external legal suppliers** (law firms/barristers/advocates) for dispute, review or litigation work, filtered by the **GL account(s)** or **spend categories** ACC uses for legal services and/or litigation/appeals/reviews.

**Fields requested (where held):**

* Supplier legal name; NZBN (or other supplier ID)
* Invoice number; invoice date; payment date
* Line description / matter reference (with personal identifiers redacted if required)
* Amount (NZD ex-GST), GST, gross
* **GL Account code & description; Cost Centre; Project/Work Order; Business Unit**
* Any **matter type** or tag used (e.g., ICRA, Fairway, District Court, High Court, Tribunal)
* (If held) **Claim number** (I accept redaction to protect third-party privacy; aggregated totals per supplier/matter type suffice)

Format: Please provide as **CSV** (s 16 OIA). If multiple GL codes are used for legal services, include **all relevant codes** (see Part B).

Why this is held: ACC has previously released **ERP extracts of supplier payments** via FYI (showing supplier names/amounts — including *McCaw Lewis Limited*) demonstrating such data can be exported without per-file collation. ([FYI][1])

Part B — Chart of accounts & coding used for legal spend

Please provide:

1. A list of **GL Account codes/descriptions** used for **external legal services** (including litigation/review/appeal costs) during **2020/21–2024/25**.
2. Any **Cost Centres/Programs/Projects** commonly used to record spend on **ICRA, Fairway, or court appeals**.
3. Any **data dictionary** or field definitions needed to interpret the Part A CSV.

Part C — Panel/contracting arrangements and supplier list

Please provide:

1. The **current list of panel or approved external legal suppliers** engaged to act for ACC in reviews/appeals/disputes, and the **date ranges** of any panel or contract arrangements (including when ACC established its own external legal panel for AC Act litigation). ([FYI][2])
2. Any **standard engagement terms** or **service level expectations** for these suppliers.
3. For **2020/21–2024/25**, a **summary by supplier** of **annual total paid** (fees + disbursements + GST) for dispute/litigation matters only. (If producing this summary is onerous, please provide it **by the top 20 suppliers by value** for each year.)

Part D — Breakdown by forum / matter type (aggregates)

For 2020/21–2024/25, please provide **aggregated totals** (fees + disbursements + GST) by:

Forum: ICRA, Fairway, District Court, High Court, other tribunals
Business area: (e.g., PIC/impairment, cover, treatment injury, AEP/NZDF-transferred claims)
Outcome stage: mediation/settlement; hearing; appeal (if tagged in your system)

If not held as a canned report, please produce **one-off aggregated tables** based on the same ERP/GL filters used in Part A (s 17 allows reasonable extraction).

Part E — Narrowing options (to avoid s 18(f))

If my scope is assessed as potentially requiring “substantial collation,” please **apply s 13 duty to assist** and proceed with any of the following **narrower options without delay**:

1. Limit Part A to the **GL code(s)** explicitly titled **“Legal services” / “Litigation” / “Reviews & Appeals”**;
2. Limit suppliers to a **panel list** or to the **top 20 legal suppliers by value** each year;
3. Limit to **forums** (ICRA/Fairway/courts) rather than claim types; or
4. Provide **2023/24 and 2024/25** first, with earlier years to follow.

Partial release is requested where possible.

Part F — My claim (context only)

For clarity, I have an **ICRA hearing on 16 October 2025** (Claim **#10038184163**). While this OIA targets system-level data, please note I will seek **claim-specific invoices/time entries** under the **Privacy Act 2020**. (If easier for ACC, you may provide my claim’s **aggregate external-legal total to date** in this OIA, with personal identifiers redacted.)

Administration

Format: CSV (Part A), PDF or CSV (Parts B–D).
Timeframe: Standard 20 working days; if an **extension** is needed, please advise under s 15A and provide **rolling/partial release**.
Withholdings: If any information is withheld, please **cite the exact subsection** and explain the public-interest test (s 9(1)).
Charges: Please consider **waiver** due to public interest and reuse on FYI.

Kind regards,
Spencer Gerwyn Jones

Kia ora Christopher Johnston and the OIA Services team,

Reference:** GOV-043640 (original refusal 29 Oct 2025)
Original FYI Request:** #32534 – *ACC external legal services – finance/ERP extracts, GL codes, and panel spend (2020/21–2024/25)*

Thank you for your response today. I note the refusal under s18(f) due to substantial collation across multiple teams and systems. I appreciate the invitation to refine the scope and, in the spirit of s13 (duty to assist) and **public interest transparency (s5), I am now submitting a significantly narrowed request to enable a manageable and efficient response.

This refined request removes all 2020–2022 data, eliminates per-supplier or per-invoice detail, drops all claim-level references, and focuses only on high-level aggregates and coding metadata for the two most recent financial years (2023/24 and 2024/25). It is designed to be answerable using existing reports, GL summaries, or simple ERP queries—no manual file collation required.

Refined Official Information Act Request – GOV-043640 (Follow-up)

Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request the following **aggregated and anonymised** information about ACC’s expenditure on **external legal services** used in **dispute, review, or litigation processes** (e.g., ICRA, Fairway, District/High Court) for **2023/24 and 2024/25 only**:

Part 1 – GL Account Codes & Categories (Metadata only)
Please provide:
1. A list of **GL account codes and descriptions** used in ACC’s finance/ERP system to record **external legal services** related to **reviews, appeals, or litigation** in 2023/24 and 2024/25.
- Example format:
```
GL Code | Description
720100 | External Legal – Reviews & Appeals
720200 | Litigation Counsel – Court Matters
```
2. Any **Cost Centre, Project, or Program codes** commonly associated with **ICRA**, **Fairway**, or **Court appeals** (names only—no spend data).
3. A brief **data dictionary** (if held) defining key fields (e.g., “Matter Type”, “Forum”) used in legal spend tracking.

*Format:* CSV or PDF table
*Why feasible:* This is static reference data, not transactional. ACC has released similar coding structures in prior OIAs (e.g., FYI #19876 – provider payment codes).

Part 2 – Aggregated Spend by Forum (Two Years Only)
Please provide **total annual spend** (NZD, **including GST**) on **external legal services** for dispute/litigation matters, broken down by **forum**, for **2023/24 and 2024/25**:

| Financial Year | ICRA | Fairway | District Court | High Court | Other Tribunals | **Total** |
|----------------|------|---------|----------------|------------|------------------|-----------|
| 2023/24 | | | | | | |
| 2024/25 | | | | | | |

*Notes:*
- Aggregates only—no supplier names, invoices, or claim numbers.
- Use the same GL filters as in Part 1.
- If “Other Tribunals” is not tracked, combine into “Other” or note as N/A.
- If 2024/25 is incomplete, provide YTD and note cut-off date.

*Format:* CSV or PDF table
*Why feasible:* ACC produces financial reporting for levy setting and annual accounts. High-level forum aggregates are likely available via canned reports or simple queries (per s17 OIA).

Part 3 – Top 5 External Legal Suppliers by Total Spend (Aggregated, Two Years)
For **2023/24 and 2024/25 combined**, please provide **total paid** (NZD, **including GST**) to the **top 5 external legal suppliers** (by value) for dispute/litigation work:

| Rank | Supplier Legal Name | Total Paid (2023/24 + 2024/25) |
|------|---------------------|-------------------------------|
| 1 | | |
| 2 | | |
| ... | | |

*Notes:*
- Redact supplier names **only if required under s9(2)(a)**—otherwise, release (public interest in accountability).
- No per-year or per-matter breakdown.
- Based on same GL filters as Part 1.

*Format:* CSV or PDF table
*Why feasible:* Top-supplier summaries are standard in procurement reporting (e.g., AoG panel dashboards, ACC annual report disclosures).

Administration & Grounds for Release

- **Timeframe:** 20 working days from receipt. Partial/rolling release welcome (s16C).
- **Format:** CSV preferred for tables (s16); PDF acceptable.
- **Charges:** Please **waive** under public interest (s12(2))—this data supports scrutiny of ACC’s $662m claims-handling spend and levy sustainability. Will be published on FYI.org.nz.
- **Withholdings:** If any, cite exact subsection and apply public interest test (s9(1)).
- **Duty to Assist (s13):** This scope uses your original Part E narrowing options (limit to recent years, aggregates, top suppliers, GL-based). It avoids per-claim or per-invoice work.
- **Context:** This follows your refusal under s18(f) and is structured to **minimise resource impact** while preserving public interest.

I look forward to a positive and constructive response. Please don’t hesitate to contact me to discuss further refinements.

Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
[email address]