Case notes: Tribunal decisions on pain and the NDIS
I can't publish testimonials or client stories, so these case notes do the next best thing. They show what good evidence looks like, and what goes wrong, in the Tribunal's own words, and I apply those lessons directly to your evidence.
Pain-related NDIS decisions published by the Administrative Review Tribunal, read in full and indexed as I go. 124 as at 2 October 2026.
When the NDIS refuses a support and you ask for a review, the Tribunal is where it can end up. Its published reasons show which evidence it accepted and which it didn't, and that's what my method is built from. Every entry carries its citation, so you can check anything here against the decision itself.
The full index of 124 decisions
- 124decisions in the index
- 6Guidance and Appeals Panel
- 13supports decisions
- 104access decisions
- 1procedural ruling
Each row shows who the decision favoured, with the Tribunal's own orders underneath.
124 decisions
- Went the applicant's way
- Went against them
- Read closely: the orders don't say what the headline suggests
- Case noteFull written note
Guidance and Appeals Panel 6
| Case | Date | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Warwick[2026] ARTA 1511 | 5 Aug 2026 | Favoured the participant: relocation costs approvedSet aside and remitted |
| CEO v KDKJ by her nominee, NKHPV Case note[2026] ARTA 1166 | 29 Jun 2026 | Favoured the Agency: supports reducedSet aside and remittedSet aside and remitted on the Agency's application, with nursing replaced, therapy cut, and hydrotherapy refused. |
| CEO v QJHVM[2026] ARTA 750 | 8 May 2026 | Favoured the Agency: funding reducedSet aside and substitutedSet aside and replaced with a decision that cut funding by $38,090. |
| NNFXT by his nominee, QKMBR Case note[2026] ARTA 308 | 12 Mar 2026 | Favoured the Agency: varied by consentAffirmed and varied |
| CEO v Roberts[2025] ARTA 2628 | 11 Dec 2025 | Favoured the Agency: support out of scopeAffirmed |
| CEO v Hyde[2025] ARTA 2597 | 5 Dec 2025 | Favoured the participant: supports approvedSet aside and varied |
Supports decisions 13
| Case | Date | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Hayder[2026] ARTA 1068 | 9 Jun 2026 | Supports refusedSet aside and remittedSet aside and remitted, with a direction that the supports aren't necessary. |
| Brady[2026] ARTA 836 | 18 May 2026 | Supports refusedAffirmed |
| Cottle[2026] ARTA 265 | 27 Feb 2026 | Supports refusedSet aside and remittedSet aside and remitted, with an order that none of the impairments met the access criteria. |
| Blesing_2026_ARTA_606.pdf[2026] ARTA 606 | 18 Feb 2026 | Supports refusedSet aside and remitted |
| Brown Case note[2025] ARTA 2029 | 9 Oct 2025 | Supports approvedVaried |
| Butler Case note[2025] ARTA 1579 | 28 Aug 2025 | Supports refusedAffirmed |
| SMNL[2025] ARTA 1512 | 25 Aug 2025 | Supports refusedSet aside, varied and remittedSet aside, varied and remitted, with the same direction: the supports aren't necessary. |
| Schaefer[2025] ARTA 1541 | 25 Aug 2025 | Supports refusedAffirmed |
| DZQW[2025] ARTA 1543 | 11 Aug 2025 | Supports approvedSet aside and remitted |
| Forrest[2025] ARTA 1131 | 25 Jul 2025 | Supports approvedVaried |
| TZQP[2025] ARTA 839 | 25 Jun 2025 | Supports refused; access refused on physical impairmentsSet aside and remittedSet aside and remitted, but every order went against the applicant. |
| Sparkes[2025] ARTA 561 | 14 May 2025 | Supports refusedSet aside and remittedSet aside and remitted, but every support she asked for was refused; the only addition was 16 hours of decluttering the NDIS had already offered. |
| KDKJ[2025] ARTA 454 | 16 Apr 2025 | Supports approvedSet aside and remitted |
Access decisions 104
| Case | Date | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Taleb[2026] ARTA 1816 | 26 Aug 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Smith[2026] ARTA 1805 | 24 Aug 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Hicks[2026] ARTA 1828 | 24 Aug 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Murphy[2026] ARTA 1723 | 19 Aug 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Gordon[2026] ARTA 1736 | 17 Aug 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Brock[2026] ARTA 1596 | 11 Aug 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Kenny[2026] ARTA 1518 | 6 Aug 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| WLXN[2026] ARTA 1469 | 31 Jul 2026 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Rydyr Case note[2026] ARTA 1273 | 10 Jul 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Kakhsaz[2026] ARTA 1281 | 10 Jul 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Weldon[2026] ARTA 1259 | 8 Jul 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Alsayed[2026] ARTA 1593 | 30 Jun 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Alexander[2026] ARTA 1044 | 10 Jun 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| El-Boustany[2026] ARTA 897 | 26 May 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Saint[2026] ARTA 873 | 22 May 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| JSMP[2026] ARTA 770 | 11 May 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Manago[2026] ARTA 751 | 8 May 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| ZXMF[2026] ARTA 755 | 8 May 2026 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Burke[2026] ARTA 686 | 27 Apr 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Dand[2026] ARTA 737 | 21 Apr 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Long[2026] ARTA 544 | 9 Apr 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Vinen[2026] ARTA 473 | 31 Mar 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Kelly[2026] ARTA 628 | 30 Mar 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Thompson[2026] ARTA 413 | 23 Mar 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| McKinty[2026] ARTA 390 | 20 Mar 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| TPHL[2026] ARTA 332 | 13 Mar 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Andrews[2026] ARTA 302 | 6 Mar 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| LHRL[2026] ARTA 266 | 27 Feb 2026 | Access granted: named impairments onlySet asideAccess granted for named impairments only. |
| Rahmani[2026] ARTA 272 | 27 Feb 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Fox[2026] ARTA 257 | 20 Feb 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Meehan[2026] ARTA 107 | 2 Feb 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Jawad[2026] ARTA 39 | 15 Jan 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Isbister[2026] ARTA 7 | 5 Jan 2026 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Lowndes[2025] ARTA 2735 | 19 Dec 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Charleton[2025] ARTA 2712 | 16 Dec 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Ploenges[2025] ARTA 2651 | 12 Dec 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Service[2025] ARTA 2572 | 4 Dec 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| RCZX[2025] ARTA 2595 | 3 Dec 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| CTXR[2025] ARTA 2541 | 27 Nov 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Brassington[2025] ARTA 2513 | 25 Nov 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Moore[2025] ARTA 2489 | 19 Nov 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Stephenson[2025] ARTA 2465 | 18 Nov 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Nematian Case note[2025] ARTA 2439 | 14 Nov 2025 | Access granted: psychosocial impairments onlySet asideAccess granted on psychosocial impairments; the pain claim was refused. |
| Warren[2025] ARTA 2412 | 13 Nov 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Lord[2025] ARTA 2401 | 12 Nov 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| King[2025] ARTA 2406 | 6 Nov 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| TCHH[2025] ARTA 2364 | 5 Nov 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Yusuf[2025] ARTA 2262 | 20 Oct 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Lozanov[2025] ARTA 2216 | 17 Oct 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Peters[2025] ARTA 2053 | 14 Oct 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| BBCV[2025] ARTA 2152 | 14 Oct 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| MHRQ[2025] ARTA 1970 | 2 Oct 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Geiger and Chief Executive Officer, of the National Disability Insurance Agency[2025] ARTA 1901 | 24 Sep 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| ZTDG and Chief Executive Officer of the National Disability Insurance Agency[2025] ARTA 2862 | 19 Sep 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Carr[2025] ARTA 1786 | 14 Sep 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| HVMKN[2025] ARTA 1552 | 27 Aug 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Court[2025] ARTA 1560 | 26 Aug 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Hassett[2025] ARTA 1513 | 25 Aug 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Amgad[2025] ARTA 1451 | 15 Aug 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Miatke[2025] ARTA 1358 | 14 Aug 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Francis[2025] ARTA 1341 | 6 Aug 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Xie[2025] ARTA 1296 | 27 Jul 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Jalali[2025] ARTA 1093 | 24 Jul 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Almswdni[2025] ARTA 1090 | 23 Jul 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Tomlinson[2025] ARTA 1056 | 22 Jul 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Cakir[2025] ARTA 1661 | 17 Jul 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| BFYK[2025] ARTA 1006 | 14 Jul 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Maroulis[2025] ARTA 1132 | 27 Jun 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Stuart[2025] ARTA 804 | 24 Jun 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| KBBW[2025] ARTA 1033 | 24 Jun 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Evans[2025] ARTA 725 | 11 Jun 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Foster[2025] ARTA 718 | 6 Jun 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| RGQW[2025] ARTA 605 | 26 May 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Burrows[2025] ARTA 607 | 26 May 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| RVTJ and Chief Executive Officer of the National Disability Insurance Agency[2025] ARTA 683 | 23 May 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| DLQM[2025] ARTA 578 | 14 May 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Kelly[2025] ARTA 460 | 23 Apr 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Forbes[2025] ARTA 384 | 22 Apr 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| McDonnell[2025] ARTA 387 | 16 Apr 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Angelopoulos[2025] ARTA 521 | 7 Apr 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Paul[2025] ARTA 312 | 2 Apr 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Harding Case note[2025] ARTA 373 | 2 Apr 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Bond[2025] ARTA 1803 | 2 Apr 2025 | Access granted: early intervention onlySet asideAccess granted as early intervention; the functional capacity test was failed in all six areas. |
| Moxham and Chief Executive Officer, of the National Disability Insurance Agency[2025] ARTA 290 | 1 Apr 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Zhu[2025] ARTA 233 | 20 Mar 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Daniel[2025] ARTA 215 | 14 Mar 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| YXVG and Chief Executive Office of the National Disability Insurance Agency[2025] ARTA 238 | 14 Mar 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Ward[2025] ARTA 1368 | 13 Mar 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Mason[2025] ARTA 270 | 11 Mar 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| GFRF[2025] ARTA 1356 | 6 Mar 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Aiello[2025] ARTA 72 | 7 Feb 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Butic and Chief Executive Office of the National Disability Insurance Agency[2025] ARTA 76 | 6 Feb 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Touma[2025] ARTA 200 | 6 Feb 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Gan[2025] ARTA 54 | 3 Feb 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Phillips[2025] ARTA 159 | 1 Feb 2025 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Keys[2025] ARTA 41 | 17 Jan 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| Blackberry[2025] ARTA 39 | 10 Jan 2025 | Access grantedSet aside |
| HKPN[2024] ARTA 415 | 24 Dec 2024 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Musgrove[2024] ARTA 952 | 18 Dec 2024 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| White[2024] ARTA 943 | 10 Dec 2024 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Khassouk[2024] ARTA 233 | 20 Nov 2024 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Brockway[2024] ARTA 75 | 15 Nov 2024 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Minett[2024] ARTA 293 | 12 Nov 2024 | Access refusedAffirmed |
| Paulic[2024] ARTA 944 | 4 Nov 2024 | Access refusedAffirmed |
Procedural decisions 1
| Case | Date | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Shanahan[2026] ARTA 13 | 8 Jan 2026 | Not dismissed: application continuesNot dismissedThe Tribunal refused to dismiss the application, so it continues. |
What's in the index
Published Tribunal decisions on NDIS access and supports where chronic pain, or a condition whose main impact is pain, was in issue. Guidance and Appeals Panel decisions are included whatever the impairment, because they guide every decision below them.
Not included: unpublished decisions, matters settled before a hearing, and decisions where pain is only in the background.
New case notes go to the feed as they're written.
These are published Tribunal decisions, not my clients. They're summarised to show what the records in each matter did and didn't establish. Nothing here is a prediction about any other matter, and no outcome is implied. Every decision turns on its own evidence.