Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal makes key appointments to help with workloads

After the merging of nine Tasmanian tribunals, work has piled up for TASCAT. Here’s how three new appointments are hoping to help.

Generic photo of the scales of justice. Picture: NewsWire / Glenn Campbell

As it struggles to keep on top of a ballooning workload of more than 4000 cases, three new appointments have been announced for the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (TASCAT).

The three newcomers charged with cutting red tape – Louise Mollross, Robert Winter and Olivia Ridley – come from various legal backgrounds and will help work through the growing number of cases reaching the tribunal.

TASCAT was formed in 2021 through the merger of nine Tasmanian Tribunals and Boards, each with its own systems and leadership bodies to govern them, which often proved taxing for everyday Tasmanians to navigate.

Boards such as the Anti-Discrimination Tribunal (ADT), Guardianship and Administration Board (GAB) and Health Practitioners Tribunal (HPT) now all fall under the one tribunal umbrella.

Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal president Malcolm Schyvens. Picture: Chris Kidd

TASCAT received 4763 lodgements and conducted 412 hearings in 2023/24.

Ms Mollross will join TASCAT as Deputy President/Division Head of the Protective Division, and Ms Ridley will also joins an ordinary member.

The Protective Division is made up of the Guardianship and Administration Board and the Mental Health Tribunal.

Ms Mollross has specialised in family law while at Ogilvie Jennings Lawyer, also working extensively in the area of wills and estate and being appointed to act as an independent children’s lawyer in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia and as a child representative in the Magistrates Court.

Robert Winter will join as a senior member of the general division, which is responsible for ‘streams’ including resource and planning, personal compensation, anti-discrimination, health practitioners, forestry practices and civil and consumer.

Mr Winter holds extensive experience in prosecutions and insurance litigation as well as working for a loss adjusting practice for the past 29 years. He is also a current member of the Anti-Discrimination Tribunal and the Code of Conduct Panel established under the Local Government Act.

The three new members are funded partly by the state government’s additional $2.2m in funding over four years allocated in the State Budget.

Minister Guy Barnett. Picture: Linda Higginson

Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Guy Barnett said the funding would support TASCAT’s continued growth.

“It has been a huge year of expansion, consultation and improving access to justice,” he said.

“I am particularly pleased by the new civil and consumer stream which commenced on July 1.

“This means TASCAT will now hear residential building disputes, making it simpler, faster and cheaper for Tasmanians to resolve their building disputes.”

The Tasmanian Government also hopes to transfer further jurisdictions to TASCAT’s scope, tabling the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Additional Jurisdictions) Bill 2024 in parliament recently in the hopes of further cutting red tape.

Originally published as Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal makes key appointments to help with workloads