Resolution Life Australasia Ltd v Teagle [2023] FCA 1607

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Resolution Life Australasia Ltd v Teagle [2023] FCA 1607 File number: NSD 732 of 2023

Judgment of: STEWART J

Date of judgment: 18 December 2023

Catchwords: SUPERANNUATION – appeal from determination of Australian Financial Complaints Authority Ltd (AFCA) – whether AFCA acted beyond power and in error of law in positing the existence of a relevant reviewable decision to not compensate the first respondent – whether AFCA erred in law in determining that the applicant must make a gratuitous payment to the first respondent – whether AFCA erred in law in failing to exclude the complaint as being about actuarial or underwriting factors under rule C.1.4(b) of the AFCA Complaint Resolution Scheme Rules – whether AFCA's determination that the first respondent satisfied the total permanent disability (TPD) definition in the policy was attended by jurisdictional error or legal unreasonableness – whether having determined that the decision to not pay a TPD benefit was fair and reasonable, it was legally unreasonable of AFCA to determine that the TPD decision not to compensate the first respondent outside the policy terms was not fair and reasonable – whether AFCA erred in failing to provide procedural fairness to the applicant by making the determination, reversing its position in its prior recommendation, on a number of findings without giving notice to the applicant, and without giving the applicant a fair and reasonable opportunity to respond to them

Legislation: Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), ss 1051(4)(e), 1053(1), 1053(1), 1053(5), 1055(1), 1055(2), 1055(4), 1055(6), 1055(7)(a)-(c), 1057(1), Pt 7.10A Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth), s 13 AFCA Complaints Resolution Scheme Rules, rr A.21(c), A.10.1, A.10.2, A.14.2