Nguyen v Australian Financial Complaints Authority [2024] FCAFC 77

Nguyen v Australian Financial Complaints Authority [2024] FCAFC 77

The appeal was allowed because it was open to AFCA to find that Mr Nguyen and Mr Corbisiero were living together on a genuine domestic basis in a relationship as a couple at the date of death and that Mr Corbisiero had not taken steps before death to terminate the relationship. The text message, although evidencing an intention to end his life and relationship, was sent to a third party and was not itself conduct sufficient to terminate the de facto relationship before death. The suicide ended the relationship at death but could not invalidate the death benefit nomination by terminating the relationship before death. AFCA's conclusion was therefore not affected by legal error.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
13 June 2024
Procedural Posture
Appeal From Decision of Single Judge of the Federal Court of Australia on Questions of Law From an AFCA Superannuation Determination / Full Court Appeal
Outcome
Appeal allowed.
Legal Topics
['afca External Dispute Resolution' 'death Benefit Nomination' 'de Facto Relationship Termination' 'questions of Law on Appeal' 'fair and Reasonable Determination']
['administrative Law' 'superannuation' 'insurance' 'corporations Law'] ['afca External Dispute Resolution' 'death Benefit Nomination' 'de Facto Relationship Termination' 'questions of Law on Appeal' 'fair and Reasonable Determination']

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Procedural Posture

Appeal From Decision of Single Judge of the Federal Court of Australia on Questions of Law From an AFCA Superannuation Determination / Full Court Appeal

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ["Whether AFCA erred in law by concluding that Mr Nguyen remained Mr Corbisiero's spouse at the time of death." 'Whether a text message sent by Mr Corbisiero to his sister was effective to terminate his de facto relationship with Mr Nguyen before death.' 'Whether a unilateral intention to terminate a de facto relationship, communicated to a third party, is sufficient without conduct apt to manifest termination.' "Whether Mr Corbisiero's suicide could be treated as conduct terminating the relationship before death."]

Ratio Decidendi

The appeal was allowed because it was open to AFCA to find that Mr Nguyen and Mr Corbisiero were living together on a genuine domestic basis in a relationship as a couple at the date of death and that Mr Corbisiero had not taken steps before death to terminate the relationship. The text message, although evidencing an intention to end his life and relationship, was sent to a third party and was not itself conduct sufficient to terminate the de facto relationship before death. The suicide ended the relationship at death but could not invalidate the death benefit nomination by terminating the relationship before death. AFCA's conclusion was therefore not affected by legal error.

Court Disposition

Appeal allowed.

Orders

  • ['The appeal be allowed.' "The orders of the primary judge made on 2 November 2023 and 5 December 2023 in matter VID 442 of 2023 be set aside and, in their place, it be ordered that: (a) the second respondent's notice of appeal from a tribunal dated 15 June 2023 be dismissed; and (b) the second respondent pay the...