Ombudsman Act 1976

The functions of the Defence Force Ombudsman are to investigate complaints made to him or her under this Act and to perform such other functions as are conferred on him or her by:

this Act or the regulations; or

another Act or regulations made under another Act.

Subject to this Act, the Defence Force Ombudsman:

shall investigate action that he or she is authorized by this Act to investigate and in respect of which a complaint has been made to him or her; and

may, of his or her own motion, investigate action that he or she is authorized by this Act to investigate.

Subject to subsection (5), the Defence Force Ombudsman is authorized by this Act to investigate action, being action that relates to a matter of administration, taken either before or after the commencement of this Part by a Department or by a prescribed authority, with respect to a matter that is related to the service of a member of the Defence Force or that arises in consequence of a person serving or having served in the Defence Force.

Without limiting the generality of subsection (3), action referred to in that subsection includes action taken by a Department, or by a prescribed authority, with respect to the payment of an allowance or pension to, or the provision of a benefit for, a member of the Defence Force or a dependant of such a member, being an allowance, pension or benefit that is or may be payable or is or may be provided by reason of, or as a result of, the service of the member in the Defence Force.

The Defence Force Ombudsman is not authorized by this Act to investigate:

action taken by a Minister;

action taken by a Justice or Judge of a court created by the Parliament;

action taken by:

a magistrate or coroner for the Australian Capital Territory, Norfolk Island, the Territory of Christmas Island or the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands; or

a person who holds office as a magistrate in a State or the Northern Territory in the performance of the functions of a magistrate conferred on him or her by or under an Act;

action taken in connection with proceedings against a member of the Defence Force for an offence arising under any law, including a law of the United Kingdom as applying by virtue of a law of the Commonwealth, relating to the discipline of the Defence Force or of an arm or part of the Defence Force; or

action taken in relation to the grant or refusal of an honour or award to a particular member of the Defence Force.

The reference in paragraph (5)(a) to action taken by a Minister does not include a reference to action taken by a delegate of a Minister, and, for the purposes of this subsection, action shall be deemed to have been taken by such a delegate notwithstanding that the action is taken in pursuance of a power that is deemed by a provision of an enactment, when exercised by the delegate, to have been exercised by the Minister.

For the purposes of the application of this Act to or in relation to the Defence Force Ombudsman, action taken by a Department or by a prescribed authority shall not be regarded as having been taken by a Minister by reason only that the action was taken by the Department or authority in relation to action that has been, is proposed to be, or may be, taken by a Minister personally.

The reference in paragraph (5)(e) to action taken in relation to the grant or refusal of an honour or award to a particular member of the Defence Force does not include a reference to action taken in relation to the grant or refusal of honours or awards to members of the Defence Force generally, or of an arm or part of the Defence Force, with respect to their service in a particular area or for a particular period.

The reference in subsection (4) to a dependant of a member of the Defence Force means:

in relation to action taken under an enactment—a person who is, or is claiming to be, a dependant of a member, or was, or is claiming to have been, a dependant of a deceased member, of the Defence Force for the purposes of that enactment; or

in any other case—a person who is, or is claiming to be, wholly or partly dependent on a member of the Defence Force or who was, or is claiming to have been, at the date of the death of a deceased member of the Defence Force, wholly or partly dependent on that member.