Pensions Appeal Commissioners

Their work involves giving interpretations of the law which are binding on the administrative, adjudication and Tribunal Systems at the levels below them, and remedying procedural injustices in those systems.

The Commissioners operate at a level comparable to High Court Judges in that appeals from their decisions are to the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal and thence to the UK Supreme Court.

The Commissioners are assisted by a Legal Officer who is authorised by the Lord Chancellor to issue directions and interlocutory rulings in individual cases, although all final decisions are given by Commissioners.

Appeals may be brought before a Commissioner only on questions of law. Most appeals are determined on paper without a hearing, but the parties may ask for a hearing and sometimes Commissioners direct a hearing even if one has not been requested.

Hearings mainly take place, at the Commissioners' Office in Belfast but can also be heard in court buildings throughout Northern Ireland.

The Commissioners are independent of the United Kingdom Government, the Northern Ireland Executive and the Civil Service. In particular it is to be stressed that they are independent of the Ministry of Defence and the Appeal Tribunals who hear the initial appeals by claimants.

Under the War Pensions legislation there is no right of appeal to a Commissioner in Assessment cases. The Tribunals Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 remedied this omission by providing an appeal to a new judicial body known as the Upper Tribunal. The Upper Tribunal operates in a similar manner to the Pensions Appeal Commissioners. 

Notes on How to Apply for Leave to Appeal / Appeal to a Commissioner

If you think that the Tribunal decision in your case is wrong you may wish to appeal or apply for leave (that is, permission) to appeal. These notes are designed to tell you how to do so. Please read the notes carefully. They set out the steps involved and answer some questions you may have. The PAC1 form should be used if you do wish to appeal or apply for leave (found in our downloads section).  

Before you can appeal to a Commissioner

• You should ask for a written statement of the Tribunal's reasons for its decision, and then:
• Apply to the Tribunal Chairman or Legally Qualified Panel Member for leave to appeal.

There are strict time limits for applying for the written statement and for leave to appeal which are explained elsewhere in this guide.

Your chances of appealing may be lost or seriously prejudiced if you do not ask for and obtain a written statement before you apply for leave or if you fail to meet the time limits.

• When you hear from The Pensions Appeal Tribunal (P.A.T.) with the Chairman's or Legally Qualified Panel Member's decision on your application for leave to appeal, complete the relevant parts of the PAC1 form and send it to the Commissioners' Office at the address given at the end of that form.

Remember you must have asked the Tribunal Chairman or Legally Qualified Panel Member for leave to appeal before you can go to the Commissioner.

If you have not done this you should do so by contacting the P.A.T. Office that issued your Tribunal decision without delay. If you have a form from P.A.T. for applying for leave to appeal, use it to make your application. If you do not have such a form, contact P.A.T. immediately.

If the Chairman or Legally Qualifed Panel Member grants leave

If you have applied to the Chairman or Legally Qualified Panel Member and he or she has granted you leave, you may appeal to a Commissioner using Sections A B C & E of the form. The Commissioners' Office must receive your appeal within one month of the date you were sent the letter telling you that the Chairman or Legally Qualified Panel Member had granted leave.

If you are appealing to a Commissioner outside the one month time limit you will also have to complete Section D of the form. It will be up to the Commissioner whether or not to allow your appeal to proceed even though you are late.

If the Chairman or Legally Qualified Panel Member refuses leave or rejects your application

If the Chairman or Legally Qualified Panel Member has refused you leave or rejected your application for leave you may apply to the Commissioner for leave. Do this by completing Sections A B C & E of the form. You have one month after the notice of refusal or rejection was sent to you by P.A.C. to apply to a Commissioner. If you are applying to a Commissioner outside this time limit you must also complete Section D of the form explaining why you are late.

A Commissioner will decide whether or not to allow your application for leave to appeal to proceed even though you are late.

If a Commissioner grants leave

If a Commissioner grants you leave you do not usually need to do anything more as your case will progress to the next stage in the Commissioners' Office automatically. The Commissioners' Office will write to you if there is anything more you need to do.

If a Commissioner refuses leave

If a Commissioner refuses leave you cannot appeal against the determination.

Additional documents

You should send certain documents with the form when you send it in to the Commissioners' Office. Please see Section E of the form. It tells you about the additional documents.

Time Limits

There are time limits for applying to P.A.T. for the additional documents. You should request the written statement of reasons, 6 weeks from the date on which the Tribunal decision notice was given or sent to you. If you were present at the hearing the decision notice was probably given to you on the day. It is usually a brief form giving the result of your appeal.

You must apply for leave to appeal from the Tribunal Chairman or Legally Qualified Panel Member within one month from the date the written statement of reasons was sent to you, The record of proceedings must be requested within six months of the date of the Tribunal decision. Do not delay your application if you are only waiting for a copy of the record of proceedings.

Downloads

Use this link to view our forms and guidance notes on how to complete each. 

The Form PAC1 should be used if you do wish to appeal or apply for leave. 

Notes for completion of Form PAC1

• Sections A B C & E should be completed for all applications.
• If you are applying outside the time limit you must also complete Section D.
• Please note the additional information contained in Section E which tells you about additional documents that should be sent with the form.

If the tribunal refuses you permission you may apply directly to the Pensions Appeal Commissioner or Upper Tribunal as appropriate using the UTNI 1 Form. 

Send Completed PAC1 Application Forms to:

What if I disagree with the decision of the Pensions Appeal Tribunal? 

If you think the Pensions Appeal Tribunal decision was wrong on a point of law you may appeal but the next steps in the procedure may vary slightly depending on which decision you wish to appeal

If you wish to appeal a decision under the Armed Force Compensation scheme i.e. in respect of an injury sustained after 5 April 2005 you may appeal to the Pensions Appeal Commissioners

If it is an Entitlement or Specified Decision under the War Pensions Scheme i.e. in respect of an injury sustained pre 5 April 2005 any appeal will also be to the Pensions Appeal Commissioners

Should however you wish to appeal an assessment decision under the War Pensions Scheme in respect of an injury before 5 April 2005 you may appeal to the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber)

In all cases however you must first apply in writing to the Tribunal Chairman for leave (permission) to appeal and set out why you think the tribunal was wrong on a point of law.

If the tribunal refuses you permission you may apply directly to the Pensions Appeal Commissioner or Upper Tribunal as appropriate (forms in our downloads section). 

If the tribunal grants you permission to appeal, these forms can be used to explain to the Commissioners or Upper Tribunal your grounds for appeal.

Associated Fees

There are no fees for this service.

FAQs

Do I have to pay any money to the Pension Appeal Commissioners' Office for appealing to the Commissioner?

No.

Can I have someone to help me?

Yes. You can have someone to help with filling in the form, dealing with correspondence and attending any hearing before the Commissioner. Your representative can be a friend etc. Please see Useful Links for names and web sites of the main organisations which deal with Commissioners’ work.

If you already know the name of the person who will help you with your case please enter the details in Section B of the form.

Will there be a hearing before the Commissioner?

The Commissioner may hold a hearing or may consider that he or she can properly decide the case on the papers. If a hearing is to be held, you and the other parties to the application/appeal (usually the Service Personnel and Veterans’ Agency) will be notified and have an opportunity to attend. Your representative can come with you. If holding a hearing the Commissioner will try to do so in a reasonably convenient place. The hearing will not be like a court hearing. It will be less formal and you will have an opportunity to make any relevant points in your own words.

If you would like the hearing to be in private you may request this on the form and the Commissioner will decide whether or not to hold a private hearing.

Is appealing to a Commissioner the same as appealing to a Tribunal?

No. You can only appeal to a Commissioner on a point of law. This does not mean that you have to use technical legal language. It does mean that you or your representative must think the Tribunal's decision is wrong in law and explain why you think this is so.

Examples of errors of law are:

The Tribunal;

• did not apply the correct law to your case;
• wrongly interpreted the law;
• did not observe the rules of natural justice;
• had no evidence, or not enough evidence, to support its decision;
• did not give adequate reasons for its decision.

It is not enough to just repeat one or more of these examples. You should explain on the form why you think the Tribunal has made a mistake in law. For example if you think the Tribunal decision did not give adequate reasons you should explain why this is so and why you do not understand the decision. You can do this in your own words on the form.

It will be helpful to the Commissioner if you explain as fully as you can why you think the Tribunal was wrong in law. If the Commissioner thinks he or she can properly decide your case on the papers he or she may do so. If you explain as fully as possible on the PAC 1 form it helps the Commissioner to decide;

(a) whether or not a hearing should be held; and
(b) whether or not the Tribunal may have been wrong in law.

What should I do if I have missed a time limit?

Do not delay any further. Submit all the documents and evidence you have to hand and explain any reasons for the delay.

What will happen if I win my appeal to the Commissioner?

After your appeal the Commissioner will send you a written decision. If you have won the appeal the Commissioner will set the Tribunal decision aside. He or she may then either give the decision which the Tribunal should have given, or send back the matter to another Tribunal to re-hear and re-decide your case.

I want to appeal an entitlement and an assessment decision why can a Pensions Appeal Commissioner not hear both appeals?

Until recently there was no right of appeal in respect of assessment decisions. The Tribunals Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 remedied this omission for cases in NI by providing for an appeal to a new judicial body known as the Upper Tribunal. The Upper Tribunal operates in a similar manner to the Pensions Appeal Commissioners.

I don’t know if my appeal should be to a Pensions Appeal Commissioner or to The Upper Tribunal

Your decision notice from the Pensions Appeal Tribunal should state if it is an assessment decision. If it does then you should use the form: UTNI 1. In all other cases you should appeal using form PAC1. If you remain unsure as to which form to use do not delay your application. We would suggest that you lodge both forms UTNI 1 and PAC 1 with us and let us know that you were not sure which form to use.

Contact Details

Pensions Appeal Commissioners in Northern Ireland

Tel:  0300 200 7812

Email: tribunalsunit@courtsni.gov.uk

Useful Links

The following links are intended as a starting point for obtaining information about the law involved in Commissioners' cases. Claimants are reminded that they can seek help and representation from a number of sources. There are links to some of those organisations below.

Copies of any specific decision by a Commissioner can be obtained on request from the office.

Case Law

Department for Communities: https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/

The benefit law section of this site is maintained by the Decision Making Services unit of the Department for Communities and contains decisions, both reported and unreported, of the Northern Ireland Commissioners.

The Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals):

http://www.administrativeappeals.tribunals.gov.uk/index.htm

This is the site maintained by the UK Tribunals Service and contains many decisions of the Upper Tribunal and of its predecessors the GB Commissioners

British and Irish Legal Information Institute: 

www.bailii.org

This site provides free access to a range of case law and legislation.

Legislation

The Office of Public Sector Information
www.opsi.gov.uk

UK Legislation
www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/uk

Northern Ireland Legislation
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/northernireland/ni_legislation

Useful Sites

Ministry of Justice
www.justice.gov.uk

Service Personnel and Veterans Agency
http://www.veterans-uk.info/index.htm

Advice

The Royal British Legion
www.britishlegion.org.uk/

The Soldiers Sailors Airmen and families Association
www.ssafa.org.uk/

Law Centre (NI):
www.lawcentreni.org

Combat Stress
www.combatstress.org.uk

BLESMA (British Limbless Ex-Servicemen’s Association
www.blesma.org

Royal Air Force Association
www.rafa.org.uk

Law Centre (NI):
www.lawcentreni.org

Northern Ireland Association of Citizens Advice Bureau:
http://www.citizensadvice.co.uk

National Gulf Veterans and Families Association
www.ngvfa.org

Rights Net:
www.rightsnet.org.uk

European Union
http://europa.eu/index_en.htm

E.U. Legislation & Materials:
http://europa.eu/documentation/legislation/index_en.htm

Human Rights

European Court of Human Rights:
www.echr.coe.int