Stakeholder engagement

In engaging with interest holders/compensation claimants, entities should consider the principles below to guide interactions. 

The ‘Guide to Acquisitions under the LAA’ is available under Tools and templates on the Information to support the Lands Acquisition Act 1989 page.

Principle 1: Responsiveness

Prompt responses 

Commonwealth officials undertaking acquisitions should ensure that: 

  • prompt responses are provided to interest holders and their representatives, and
  • interest holders are kept informed of the progress of a matter. 
     
Entities should consider establishing internal processes and case management systems to support responsiveness. These could include:
  • advising stakeholders of delays in the process and anticipated response times.
  • assigning a contact person/s as the main point of contact for matters.
  • using shared mailboxes and/or phone numbers to support business continuity and responsiveness. 

Principle 2: Proactive engagement

Providing information  

Commonwealth officials should display clear and effective communication by:  

  • providing information in plain English (in addition to requirements within the Lands Acquisition Act 1989) to enable proactive engagement between all parties.
  • following up with stakeholders and using a variety of communication methods if there are no responses from prior attempts at engagement.
  • consulting with and bringing information together from various government sources.
  • simplifying processes and working to an effective case management model to the extent possible.  
Supporting resolution 

If negotiations stall, Commonwealth officials should work with the interest holder to narrow down the areas of dispute to the greatest extent possible. 

See Dispute resolution and Avenues for compensation resolution for more information. 

Principle 3: Acting with integrity

Acting with integrity 

Commonwealth officials must act with honesty and integrity when engaging with interest holders and decision makers. These behaviours are displayed by: 

  • being open, transparent and fair in all dealings. Ensure that decisions and deviations from acquisition or disposal strategies are evidenced, documented and agreed by decision-makers at the appropriate level
  • ensuring that staff who are responsible for communicating with claimants have appropriate skills in dealing with difficult situations
  • regularly reviewing processes and practices to ensure best practice outcomes are achieved in future approaches. 

See Acquisition strategy for more information. 

Principle 4: Collaboration

Commonwealth officials should consult early and regularly starting from the initial planning process with Finance to ensure there is a comprehensive understanding of the nature, expectations, risks and issues of the acquisition as they arise.  

See Acquisition strategy for more information. 

 


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Stakeholder engagement
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