Complaint assessment

A complaint is made to the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner.

The complaint is assessed against the Anti-Discrimination Act 1998 and the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner determines whether the complaint can be dealt with under the Act ('accepted') or is outside the scope of the Act ('rejected').

If the complaint is rejected, the Commissioner writes to the person who made the complaint (who is called the 'complainant') telling them of the decision and the reasons the complaint has been rejected. The complainant is also told about their right to have that decision reviewed by the Anti-Discrimination Tribunal and how to ask for a review.

Notifying those involved of the complaint

The person or organisation that the complaint is about (who is called the 'respondent') is generally only contacted if and when the Commissioner has decided the complaint can be dealt with under the Act. That is when the complainant/s and respondent/s are sent a letter telling them the complaint is being dealt with and why, and providing a copy of the complaint and a summary of it.

More information for respondents and complainants are available here.

Meeting to try to resolve the complaint

They will usually also be asked to come to a conciliation conference, which is a meeting to talk about resolving the complaint. If they reach an agreement at the meeting, the complaint will end with the agreement.