Administrative Appeals Tribunal president Fiona Meagher has announced she’ll step down after just eight months in the role.
Justice Berna Collier will take over as AAT president from today.
Meagher was on a base salary of $480,900. She will continue to serve as a judge of the Federal Court, moving into a full-time role.
Meagher is the daughter of former High Court judge Ian Callinan. She first joined the AAT as a part-time member in 2015 before being promoted to a full-time senior member in 2018 — the same year her father was commissioned to conduct a major review of the AAT. She was the deputy president and division head of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) before being appointed president in April this year.
Meagher and Callinan’s relationship was revealed by Crikey in 2019. It had not previously been disclosed by then attorney general Christian Porter.
Meagher faced criticism over the AAT’s performance earlier this year after it was revealed just 2% of NDIS matters made it to a hearing, with then senator Kim Carr asking how she could justify her salary with such a low case-finalisation rate.
The AAT has been struggling to reach its targets, finalising 5000 fewer cases at a slower rate than its financial year target. Just 64% of NDIS cases relating to access to the scheme were finalised within 12 months.
Bullying and harassment allegations in the tribunal were raised during Senate estimates in early November, with Meagher releasing a statement highlighting a “reform agenda” to make workplace culture and wellbeing a priority.
