After the application for review has been lodged, the Tribunal will ask the Authority for a statement of the facts on which its decision was made and its reasons for the decision. Also, the Authority has to supply the Tribunal with every other document in its possession relevant to its decision (s.37 AAT Act; s.49 VCAT Act).

The Tribunal must ensure that you have access to the statements of the Authority and to the documents on which the Tribunal proposes to rely (s.39 AAT Act). There are some special exceptions to this (ss.34 & 35).

Both Tribunals have issued practice directions and guidelines detailing procedural requirements and preferences.

The AAT requires the parties to exchange and file a statement of facts and contention (including legal arguments) on which they intend to rely. A copy of the practice directions can be obtained from the AAT Registry or from the website at www.aat.gov.au.

VCAT practice notes and usual orders provide direction on how to proceed in the different lists or areas of that tribunal, for example, Transport Accident Commission matters or residential tenancies. Generally, all parties are required to exchange and file well in advance of the hearing (at the very latest, 14 days before) all written material (including medical reports) on which they intend to rely at the hearing, together with written statements of the evidence of each proposed witness, including the applicant. VCAT requires the applicant to lodge a statement setting out the decision that the applicant desires the VCAT to make.

There are different requirements depending on the various enactments. If in doubt, check with the Registrar.

Two main courses of action are generally followed by the AAT or VCAT:

The Tribunals may direct there be a preliminary conference between the parties or, possibly, their legal representatives and a member of the Tribunal. A preliminary conference is a private conference for discussing and narrowing the issues in dispute and possibly reaching a settlement.

Both the AAT and VCAT include a mediation program as part of the pre-hearing process. Detailed guidelines and practice notes are available from the respective registrars (see: "Reviewable decisions", above for contact details).

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal Amendment Act 2005 (Cth) expands the scope of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) processes available to the AAT to include conferencing, mediation, neutral evaluation, case appraisal and conciliation (s.3(1)). Information on process models and the AAT Alternate Dispute Resolution Guidelines 2006 are available at www.aat.gov.au.

The President may direct that a proceeding, or any part of a proceeding, be referred for a particular ADR process (including conferencing) (s.34A(1) AAT Act). The AAT has a cooling off period of seven days in a mediated settlement, and the terms of settlement must be lodged with the AAT (s.34D). A mediation can be held by telephone, closed-circuit TV or in person. If the applicant fails to attend a preliminary conference, the application may be dismissed. If there is agreement between parties, the Tribunal may make a decision without holding a hearing (s.34A(4) & (5) AAT Act; s.93 VCAT Act).

Proceedings at the AAT and VCAT may also be conducted by way of a compulsory conference (s.34 AAT Act; ss.83–87 VCAT Act).

Note: VCAT procedure varies according to the requirements of each list.

If the matter is not resolved at the conference(s), (or if the Tribunal did not direct that a conference be held), the Tribunal will set the matter down for hearing on a particular date and time. There may be a preliminary hearing called a directions hearing if the Tribunal wishes to give directions as to how the matter is to proceed.

Hearings are conducted in public unless the Tribunal directs otherwise; for example, that a directions hearing be held by telephone. VCAT may have hearings by telephone or video link. All parties to the hearing are notified well in advance of the hearing date.

The Tribunals have the power to proceed in the absence of a party who has had reasonable notice of the hearing date. The Tribunals must observe the requirements of natural justice (see: "Natural justice", in Chapter 21*2 Judicial Review) but also are under a duty to act as quickly and with as little formality as possible.

A party who has a very good reason for wishing to change the hearing date should contact the opposing party or parties as soon as possible to try to obtain their consent to an adjournment of the hearing, and should then apply to the Tribunal for an adjournment. If the opposing party or parties do not consent to an adjournment, then the party wanting the adjournment should apply to the Tribunal, which may then require the opposing parties to attend a hearing of the application for an adjournment.

At the hearing of the application for review, the applicant usually presents their case first. Evidence of all witnesses is given on oath or affirmation, and each witness may be questioned by the Tribunal and cross-examined by the parties to the hearing and re-examined.

Each party is entitled to make submissions to the Tribunal. However, in VCAT, if the parties to a proceeding agree, the Tribunal may conduct all or part of the proceeding entirely on the basis of documents without any physical appearance by the parties or their representatives or witnesses (s.100(2) VCAT Act).