Dear Mr Rhys West,

FairWay Resolution Limited, (the previously named Dispute Resolution Services Limited (DRSL)) was a crown owned entity set up to administer the process of review of decisions made by the Accident Compensation Corporation Limited, when an ACC claimant lodged a request for the review of the Corporation's decision making.

As a crown owned entity DRSL, rebranded FairWay Resolution Limited, and the Reviewers have always been subject to the provisions of the Official Information Act 1982.

This has been invaluable to ACC claimants, their advocates and their lawyers in matters pertaining to the manner and way in which reviews have been processed by reviewers, and how decisions have been formed by reviewers. In particular official information can be requested under;

Section 22 of the Official Information Act Right of access to internal rules affecting decisions

and

Section 23 of the Official Information Act 1982 Right of access by person to reasons for decisions affecting that person,

that provide recourse to the ACC claimant to be able to challenge the decisions and process/policy applied by a reviewer, when an ACC claimant's rights to Natural Justice have been breached by the reviewer

Furthermore Ombudsman Professor Ron Paterson's investigation into the availability of FairWay Reviewers' Benchbook under the Official Information Act, found under case number 399972, in his final opinion on page 17 of his investigation report that;

a. FairWay's reviewers are not undertaking judicial functions for the purposes of section 2(6) of the OIA, meaning that the reviewers are fully obligated to meet their full obligations under the Official Information Act 1982.

In addition, on matters pertaining to his decision, among other issues concerning the nature of the statutory nature of reviewers functions as they apply to the Privacy Act 1993, and whether reviewers are considered to conduct judicial functions when carrying out reviews, Ombudsman Professor Ron Paterson found that, and I quote directly from page 11 of his official opinion;

"38. Although ACC has a statutory duty to engage reviewers (either on contract of service or contract for services) and to arrange for the allocation of a reviewer as soon as practicable after receiving an application for a review, I do not accept that in engaging reviewers and allocating applications, ACC can be said to be establishing tribunals having judicial functions. 10 In particular, the fact that the ACC Act contemplates such reviewers being ACC employees, militates against the proposition that in engaging a reviewer ACC is establishing a judicial tribunal performing judicial functions."

and further that;

"42. I do not consider that ACC (far less FairWay) can determine or change the statutory nature of reviewers' functions by the manner in which it engages reviewers, as this would be to 'carve out a segment of it's affairs for exemption from the provisions of the Privacy Act'. 14 If (as Arbuthnot suggests) ACC employees are performing administrative functions in conducting a review, I see no basis for accepting that, by opting not to use employees for that purpose, ACC can transform a reviewer into a tribunal performing judicial functions."

Therefore ACC claimants, their advocates, and or their lawyers have a natural justice right to be able to rely on the Official Information Act 1982 to request information request for Official Information under the full provisions of the Official Information Act 1982. In particular as noted above, Section 22 of the Official Information Act Right of access to internal rules affecting decisions and Section 23 of the Official Information Act 1982 Right of access by person to reasons for decisions affecting that person.

Any enactment between the Crown and FairWay Resolution Limited that would lead to consequences that would remove, or reduce FairWay Resolution Limited's, their staff and or the Reviewer's that conduct reviews on behalf of ACC claimant's, statutory obligations to provide to ACC claimants official information in response to requests for Official Information under the OIA Act 1982, including information requested under sections 22 and 23, would create a further barrier to justice, should FairWay Resolution, their staff, and or reviewers process an ACC claimant's review, or deliver decisions in manners that breach the ACC claimant's right to natural justice.

OIA Request 1
In the interests of transparency and fairness, I therefore respectfully request your written statement Mr Rhys West, confirming whether the recently announced transfer of FairWay Resolution's ownership from the Crown's ownership, to now being owned by FairWay Resolution Limited's from July this year has removed or reduced FairWay Resolution Limited's, their staff, and Reviewers' engaged in ACC reviews or dispute resolution, obligations to be bound by the provision of the Official Information Act 1982.

i.e. from the date of the change in FairWay Resolution Limited's ownership in July 2017, are FairWay Resolution Limited, their staff, and Reviewers' engaged in ACC reviews or dispute resolution still bound to the full obligations under the Official Information Act 1982, or from the date transfer of ownership commenced, do FairWay Resolution Limited, consider themselves, their staff, and Reviewers' engaged in ACC reviews or dispute resolution no longer subject to compliance with the Official Information Act 1982.

OIA Request 2

In the event that FairWay Resolution Limited no longer considers themselves, their employees and Reviewers' engaged in ACC reviews or dispute resolution subject to the Official Information Act 1982, please confirm whether an ACC claimant is still able to make requests under the Official Information Act 1982, for official information, from FairWay Resolution, its staff and ACC reviewers in respect of process and decision making during the period that the ACC claimant was provided services by Fairway, it's staff or ACC reviewers, and any point of contact going forward for such requests.

I thank you for your time and assistance and look forward to receiving the requested official information back via FYI.org.nz, within the next 20 working days, being by the end of business close on the 8th August 2017.

Yours faithfully,

David Lawson

Dear Mr Rhys West,

I wish to make a few corrections to my original request as follows and it would be appreciated if you could respond fully to my amended request for the official information that I requested on 12 July 2017 through https://fyi.org.nz/request/6197-fairway-... as per my amended and corrected request below;

Dear Mr Rhys West,

FairWay Resolution Limited, (the previously named Dispute Resolution Services Limited (DRSL)) was a crown owned entity set up to administer the process of review of decisions made by the Accident Compensation Corporation Limited, when an ACC claimant lodged a request for the review of the Corporation's decision making.

As a crown owned entity DRSL, rebranded FairWay Resolution Limited, and the Reviewers have always been subject to the provisions of the Official Information Act 1982.

This has been invaluable to ACC claimants, their advocates and their lawyers in matters pertaining to the manner and way in which reviews have been processed by reviewers, and how decisions have been formed by reviewers. In particular official information can be requested under;

Section 22 of the Official Information Act Right of access to internal rules affecting decisions

and

Section 23 of the Official Information Act 1982 Right of access by person to reasons for decisions affecting that person,

that provide recourse to the ACC claimant to be able to challenge the decisions and process/policy applied by a reviewer, when an ACC claimant's rights to Natural Justice have been breached by the reviewer

Furthermore Ombudsman Professor Ron Paterson's investigation into the availability of FairWay Reviewers' Benchbook under the Official Information Act, found under case number 399972, in his final opinion on page 17 of his investigation report that;

a. FairWay's reviewers are not undertaking judicial functions for the purposes of section 2(6) of the OIA, meaning that the reviewers are fully obligated to meet their full obligations under the Official Information Act 1982.

In addition, on matters pertaining to his decision, among other issues concerning the nature of the statutory nature of reviewers functions as they apply to the Privacy Act 1993, and whether reviewers are considered to conduct judicial functions when carrying out reviews, Ombudsman Professor Ron Paterson found that, and I quote directly from page 11 of his official opinion;

"38. Although ACC has a statutory duty to engage reviewers (either on contract of service or contract for services) and to arrange for the allocation of a reviewer as soon as practicable after receiving an application for a review, I do not accept that in engaging reviewers and allocating applications, ACC can be said to be establishing tribunals having judicial functions. 10 In particular, the fact that the ACC Act contemplates such reviewers being ACC employees, militates against the proposition that in engaging a reviewer ACC is establishing a judicial tribunal performing judicial functions."

and further that;

"42. I do not consider that ACC (far less FairWay) can determine or change the statutory nature of reviewers' functions by the manner in which it engages reviewers, as this would be to 'carve out a segment of it's affairs for exemption from the provisions of the Privacy Act'. 14 If (as Arbuthnot suggests) ACC employees are performing administrative functions in conducting a review, I see no basis for accepting that, by opting not to use employees for that purpose, ACC can transform a reviewer into a tribunal performing judicial functions."

Therefore ACC claimants, their advocates, and or their lawyers have a natural justice right to be able to rely on the Official Information Act 1982 to request official information from FairWay Resolution Limited, their employees, and Reviewers under the full provisions of the Official Information Act 1982. In particular as noted above, Section 22 of the Official Information Act Right of access to internal rules affecting decisions and Section 23 of the Official Information Act 1982 Right of access by person to reasons for decisions affecting that person.

Any enactment between the Crown and FairWay Resolution Limited that would lead to consequences that would remove, or reduce FairWay Resolution Limited's, their staff and or the Reviewer's that conduct reviews on behalf of ACC claimant's, statutory obligations to provide to ACC claimants official information in response to requests for Official Information under the OIA Act 1982, including information requested under sections 22 and 23, would create a further barrier to justice, should FairWay Resolution, their staff, and or reviewers process an ACC claimant's review, or deliver decisions in manners that breach the ACC claimant's right to natural justice, no longer be subject to full compliance with the Official Information Act 1982.

OIA Request 1
In the interests of transparency and fairness, I therefore respectfully request your written statement Mr Rhys West, confirming whether the recently announced transfer of FairWay Resolution's ownership from the Crown's ownership, to now being owned by FairWay Resolution Limited's employees from July this year has removed or reduced FairWay Resolution Limited's, their staff, and Reviewers' engaged in ACC reviews or dispute resolution, obligations to be bound by the provision of the Official Information Act 1982.

i.e. from the date of the change in FairWay Resolution Limited's ownership in July 2017, are FairWay Resolution Limited, their staff, and Reviewers' engaged in ACC reviews or dispute resolution still bound to the full obligations under the Official Information Act 1982, or from the date transfer of ownership commenced, do FairWay Resolution Limited, consider themselves, their staff, and Reviewers' engaged in ACC reviews or dispute resolution no longer subject to compliance with the Official Information Act 1982.

OIA Request 2

In the event that FairWay Resolution Limited no longer considers themselves, their employees and Reviewers' engaged in ACC reviews or dispute resolution subject to the Official Information Act 1982, please confirm whether an ACC claimant is still able to make requests under the Official Information Act 1982, for official information, from FairWay Resolution, its staff and ACC reviewers in respect of policy/process and decision making that happened during the period that the ACC claimant was provided services by Fairway, it's staff or ACC reviewers, prior to the completion of the sale of the Crown Owned entity FairWay Resolution Limited to the FairWay Resolution Limited's staff in July of 2017, and any point of contact going forward for such requests.

I thank you for your time and assistance and look forward to receiving the requested official information back via FYI.org.nz, within the next 20 working days, being by the end of business close on the 9th August 2017.

Yours faithfully,

David Lawson