the Applicant v The Trustee for RSSM Medical Trust
At a glance
- 1
What happened
the Applicant lodged an unfair dismissal application on December 17, 2025. She then filed a general protections application concerning the same dismissal on January 5, 2026. The Fair Work Commission (FWC) advised her that she couldn't pursue both applications simultaneously under section 725 of the Fair Work Act. Despite multiple attempts by the FWC to contact her, the Applicant did not respond.
What was decided
The FWC dismissed the Applicant’s general protections application filed on January 5, 2026. The Commission found that because she had already lodged an unfair dismissal application, section 725 of the Fair Work Act prevented her from pursuing a second application related to the same dismissal. To proceed with a general protections claim, the Applicant would need to discontinue both applications and file a new one.
What it means for employers
Employers should be aware that employees can only pursue one type of application (unfair dismissal or general protections) regarding the same termination until the first is resolved or fails. This highlights the importance of understanding Fair Work Act provisions related to multiple claims.
What it means for employees
If you've already filed an unfair dismissal claim, be aware that you may not be able to pursue a separate general protections claim about the same issue until your initial application concludes. You might need to withdraw or have it fail before lodging another type of claim.
Want this applied to your situation?
Reading the decision is free. FairWork Mate goes further — it reads the full case library and applies precedents like this one to your specific facts, citing the cases as it reasons. General information, not a guaranteed outcome or legal advice.
Send your details to Liquid Employment Lawyers
Liquid Employment Lawyers is a paid legal service and our referral partner, not free Fair Work advice. FairWork Mate may receive a referral fee from Liquid Legal. Tell them what has happened and a member of their team will call you back. For free general guidance, use our tools or call the Fair Work Ombudsman on 13 13 94.
Prefer to read first? About Liquid Employment Lawyers · Not sure if you need a lawyer? Read the legal help guides
Want more cases like this?
FairWork Mate tracks Fair Work Ombudsman, Fair Work Commission and Federal Court decisions across Australia. The AI advisor answers plain-English questions grounded on the full corpus — awards cited, industry, penalty amounts and affected employee counts — with a citation to the underlying decision on every answer.
FairWork Mate AI
This is one decision. Pro reads all of them.
Free case pages cite the top 250 decisions. Pro opens the full Fair Work Commission and Federal Court library, cross-references your own situation against it, and cites the decision behind every answer — plus document upload, so it can read your letter or contract line by line. 150 questions a month, cancel anytime.
Renews monthly at A$29.99 until you cancel. By continuing you agree to our Terms.
Get notified on new Fair Work cases
Free email alerts when we publish new underpayment decisions, penalty orders, and workplace law updates.