Has anyone any information as to Tribunals "Standing in the shoes of the decision maker".
I have a client that I am representing this week (late notice) and checking the submission there is no SoS submission at the beginning of the appeal bundle. The client was in receipt of middle rate care and high mob for limited period. On renewal the decision maker decided not continue the award and stopped all benefit(DLA). Client suffers with Non Hodgkinsons Lymphoma and Chronic Lymphatic Leukaemia. As you may appreciate I do not want the client to attend an appeal only for the chair to adjourn requesting a SoS decision.

Have you checked if TAS have a copy of a submission? If not i would send an urgent enquiry fax to TAS requesting postponement due to the late notification and lack of S of S submission.

Thanks, I have already made the Appeals Service and the clerk to the actual appeal aware. Unfortunately the chair of the Tribunal will not be aware of this until the morning of the appeal but I am going to ask for the Tribunal to stand in the shoes of the decision maker. I have requested a PO to attend.

I take it you do not want the adjournment and are ready to proceed. If there is time, you could ring the DWP office that produced the appeal papers and see if they have done a submission. If they have then they might be able to fax it to you and/or the tribunal service.

Tribunals can and from time to time do proceed without SoS submissions. They're pretty formulaic anyway and I have to say I don't often find much to interest me in them: not in DLA cases anyway. Most of the case law they quote is usually irrelevant!

Brigid C

Thanks to all who have replied. Attendd the Tribunal fortunately the chair was an experienced Tribunal Chair and was willing to proceed without the submission. PO was in attendance and for the first period of the Tribunal it was all legal arguments etc but client's award reinstated without any problems. Thanks to all