PART IGENERAL
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Adjudication) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995 and shall come into operation on 25th August 1995.
(2) In these Regulations—
“the Acts” means the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992(1) and the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992(2);
“the Administration Act” means the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992;
“the Contributions and Benefits Act” means the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992;
“adjudicating authority” means, as the case may be, an adjudicating medical practitioner, the Chief or any other adjudication officer, an appeal tribunal, a medical appeal tribunal, a disability appeal tribunal or a medical board;
“adjudicating medical authority” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 34;
“adjudicating medical practitioner” means a medical practitioner appointed in accordance with section 47(1) of the Administration Act;
“adjudication officer” means an officer appointed in accordance with section 36(1) of the Administration Act;
“appeal tribunal” means a social security appeal tribunal constituted in accordance with section 39 of the Administration Act;
“Chief Adjudication Officer” means the Chief Adjudication Officer appointed under section 37(1) of the Administration Act;
“claimant” means a person who has claimed benefit under the Acts (including, in relation to an award or decision, a beneficiary under the award or a person affected by the decision) or from whom benefit is alleged to be recoverable, and, in relation to statutory sick pay and statutory maternity pay, includes both the employee alleged to be entitled to, and the employer alleged to be liable to pay, such pay;
“Commissioner” means the Chief or any other Social Security Commissioner appointed in accordance with section 50(1) of the Administration Act and includes a Tribunal of 2 or 3 such Commissioners constituted in accordance with section 55 of that Act;
“disability appeal tribunal” means a tribunal constituted in accordance with section 41 of the Administration Act;
“disability question” has the meaning assigned by regulation 27(2);
“full-time chairman” means a full-time chairman of appeal tribunals, medical appeal tribunals and disability appeal tribunals appointed under section 49 of the Administration Act;
“income support” means income support under Part VII of the Contributions and Benefits Act and includes personal expenses addition, special transitional addition and transitional addition as defined in the Income Support (Transitional) Regulations;
“the Income Support Regulations” means the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(3);
“the Income Support (Transitional) Regulations” means the Income Support (Transitional) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(4);
“inquiry” means an inquiry held pursuant to section 15(4) of the Administration Act;
“medical appeal tribunal” means a tribunal constituted in accordance with section 48 of the Administration Act;
“medical board” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 34;
“party to the proceedings” means—
the claimant;
in proceedings before an appeal tribunal or a disability appeal tribunal, the adjudication officer;
in proceedings relating to the determination of a question included in section 15(1) of the Administration Act, any person interested within the meaning of regulation 12;
in any other proceedings, the adjudication officer and the Department except in proceedings in which the adjudication officer or the Department is the adjudicating authority; and
any other person appearing to the Department, the adjudicating authority or, in the case of a tribunal or board, its chairman or, in relation to an inquiry, the person appointed to hold the inquiry, to be interested in the proceedings.
“the Prescribed Diseases Regulations” means the Social Security (Industrial Injuries) (Prescribed Diseases) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1986(5);
“President” means the President of appeal tribunals, medical appeal tribunals and disability appeal tribunals appointed under section 49 of the Administration Act;
“proceedings” means proceedings on a claim, application, appeal or reference to which these Regulations apply.
(3) Where, by any provision of the Acts or of these Regulations—
(a)any notice or other document is required to be given or sent to any office, that notice or document shall be treated as having been so given or sent on the day that it is received in that office; and
(b)any notice or other document is required to be given or sent to any person, that notice or document shall, if sent by post to that person’s last known or notified address, be treated as having been given or sent on the day that it was posted.
(4) Unless otherwise provided, where any power is conferred by these Regulations on a chairman of an appeal tribunal, a medical appeal tribunal or a disability appeal tribunal then—
(a)where that power is to be exercised at the hearing of an appeal or application, it shall be exercised by the chairman of the tribunal hearing that appeal or application; and
(b)otherwise, it shall be exercised by a person who is eligible to be nominated to act as a chairman of an appeal tribunal under section 39 of the Administration Act.
(5) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(6) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to a Measure of the Northern Ireland Assembly.