See Fair Work Act ss.590 and 591
Section 590 of the Fair Work Act outlines the ways in which the Commission may inform itself including by:
- requiring a person to attend the Commission
- requiring written and oral submissions
- requiring a person to provide copies of documents
- taking evidence under oath or affirmation
- conducting inquiries or undertaking research, or
- holding a conference or a hearing.
Section 591 of the Fair Work Act states that the Commission is not bound by the rules of evidence and procedure (whether or not the Commission holds a hearing).
Instead, the rules of evidence ‘provide general guidance as to the manner in which the Commission chooses to inform itself’.[211]
Commission Members are expected to act judicially and in accordance with ‘notions of procedural fairness and impartiality’.[212]
Commission Members are ultimately expected to get to the heart of the matter as quickly and effectively as possible, without unnecessary technicality or formality.[213]