South Australia: AGD Releases SA Workers Compensation Scheme Review Terms

• South Australia's Attorney-General's Department has released the terms of reference for an independent review of the state's workers compensation and return-to-work scheme.
• The review aims to ensure the scheme's sustainability within a two percent average premium rate, effectively support injured workers, and keep employer costs reasonable.
• A three-member independent expert panel, chaired by retired judge Peter Hannon, includes barrister Simon Blewett SC and actuary Andrew Smith.
• The panel will conduct its examination over the next 12 months, with a final report due to the minister for industrial relations by the end of November 2027.

The independent review aims to ensure the return-to-work scheme sufficiently supports workers with injuries while maintaining employer costs within reasonable financial limits.

The Attorney-General's Department (AGD) of South Australia has formally announced the release of the terms of reference for an independent review targeting the state's workers compensation and return-to-work scheme. This significant undertaking fulfills a commitment made during the recent state election, aiming to scrutinize the scheme's operational effectiveness and financial viability.

A core objective of this review is to ensure the return-to-work scheme operates sustainably, maintaining an average premium rate that does not exceed two percent, consistent with existing financial parameters. Beyond this fiscal target, the review seeks to confirm that the scheme adequately supports injured workers while simultaneously keeping employer costs within reasonable financial boundaries.

A three-member independent expert panel has been assembled to conduct the comprehensive review, with Peter Hannon serving as its chair. Hannon brings extensive experience to the role, having previously served as a retired judge of the South Australian Employment Tribunal and its predecessor, the South Australian Workers Compensation Tribunal. His professional background includes adjudicating disputes across various iterations of the state's workers compensation legislation.

Joining Hannon on the panel is Simon James Blewett SC, a distinguished barrister whose practice encompasses employment law, industrial relations, discrimination, and workers compensation matters. Blewett also maintains a more limited practice in administrative law and legal issues pertinent to Aboriginal people. His appointment as one of two new senior counsel was recently announced by SA Chief Justice Laura Stein on behalf of the Supreme Court of South Australia judges. Blewett was admitted to legal practice in December 1990, joined the independent bar in July 2017, and holds an LLM from New York University, alongside an LLB with first-class honours from the University of Adelaide.

The third member of the panel is Andrew Smith, a qualified actuary and the managing director of Scyne Advisory. Smith's actuarial expertise is broad, having provided advice on a wide array of statutory compensation schemes throughout Australia, including those related to workers compensation, dust diseases, and motor vehicle accidents.

The independent review is specifically tasked with examining and reporting on the return-to-work scheme's effectiveness in achieving its intended aims. This includes a detailed assessment of how well the scheme supports workers who have sustained injuries, alongside an evaluation of whether employer costs remain within acceptable financial limits.

The review process is slated to unfold over the next 12 months. The independent expert panel is expected to submit its comprehensive report to the state's minister for industrial relations by the end of November 2027, outlining its findings and recommendations.

While South Australia embarks on this specific review, the broader landscape of workers compensation has seen other notable discussions and legal developments. In November 2025, Jennifer Ball, then-president of the Law Society of New South Wales, characterized the targeting of lawyers during discussions about that state's workers compensation scheme as a diversion from systemic issues that solicitors recognized required a fundamental overhaul.

Separately, a High Court of Australia justice, in a September 2025 ruling on a workers compensation case, denied an application for a constitutional or other writ. This application arose from a terminated complaint with the Australian Human Rights Commission, which had alleged unlawful discrimination.

Lawyers and compliance officers in South Australia should closely monitor the progress and final report of this independent review, due by November 2027, as it will likely lead to significant legislative or policy changes affecting the workers compensation and return-to-work scheme, impacting client advice, claims management, and employer compliance obligations.

Source: Original reporting via Australasian Lawyer