What happens next?

Assessment

The Anti-Discrimination Commission will assess your complaint and make a decision whether to accept or decline it. In most cases it will be assessed based on the material you provide us. In exceptional cases we will get information from the party you have complained about. If we do this you will be informed before we contact them.

If we accept your complaint it will be referred to a compulsory conciliation. In rare cases we may refer it directly to an evaluation.

Compulsory Conciliation

Conciliations are run by us. You and the other party (the person who made the complaint or the person being complained about) must attend. Conciliations are aimed at encouraging the two of you to find a way to resolve the dispute.

We can be flexible about how to run the conciliation, for example face-to-face, by shuttle (where you are separated from the other party), by phone, or a combination of these ways.

If you want to bring a lawyer or a support person with you, you need to get our permission first.

Download for more information about compulsory conciliation. PDF (2.0 MB)

We aim to have your compulsory conciliation within 6 weeks of accepting your complaint.

Evaluation

If you don't reach a settlement at your compulsory conciliation, the person who made the complaint can request to have the complaint evaluated. This is a process where we, the Anti-Discrimination Commission, ask both parties to show us any evidence you have about the matter being complained about. We might also ask for specific documents that must be supplied, if we think that there is something that will help us to evaluate the complaint.

We then decide whether there is a reasonable prospect of success if the complaint is heard by the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NTCAT). We will explain our decision in a letter to you, and if we think that there is a reasonable chance of success, we will refer the matter to NTCAT for them to organise a hearing.