Will they make me do a physical examination at the tribunal?

No. A tribunal hearing is not a medical examination. The medically qualified member is there to understand your condition and may ask about symptoms, but they do not examine you. The panel decides on the papers and on what you tell them, testing your evidence against the descriptors and the reliability rule in regulation 7.

If I win the appeal, is my ADP backdated?

Yes. If the tribunal awards or increases your Adult Disability Payment, the award is normally backdated to the date the entitlement should have started, which is generally the date of your original application. You do not lose the money for the months the challenge took. If you were already getting an award that was reduced or stopped and you challenged it, you may also have been receiving Short-term Assistance throughout, which is not repayable.

When do I find out the tribunal's decision?

The panel may tell you the outcome at the end of the hearing, but more often the decision is sent to you in writing afterwards. The written decision explains the points awarded on each activity. If you disagree with how the tribunal applied the law you can ask for a statement of reasons and, in limited circumstances, seek permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal for Scotland on a point of law.

ADP Tribunal: What Actually Happens on the Day

Q: Who sits on an ADP tribunal panel?

An Adult Disability Payment appeal at the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland is heard by three members: a legally qualified member who chairs the hearing and is called the Convener, a medically qualified member and a member with knowledge or experience of disability. They are independent of Social Security Scotland and reach the decision between them.

Q: Is a Scottish tribunal formal like a court?

No. The tribunal itself states that the hearing will not be very formal and that the tribunal is not a court. There are no wigs or gowns, you are usually addressed by your first name if you prefer, and the members ask questions in plain language. You can bring a friend or relative for support and you can have a representative speak for you.

Q: What should I bring to an ADP tribunal?

Bring your appeal papers, a copy of your ADP application Part 2, any supporting information such as letters from a consultant, GP or support worker, a list of your current medication and any notes you have made about a typical bad day. If someone is representing you, make sure they have the same papers. For a phone or video hearing, have these to hand where you are sitting.

By the time an Adult Disability Payment (ADP) appeal reaches a hearing, most people have already been through a lot. You made your application, you disagreed with the determination, you asked for a re-determination, and Social Security Scotland looked at it again and either kept the same answer or missed the 56 day deadline. Now your case is going to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland, and a letter has arrived with a date. For a lot of people that letter brings a wave of dread, mostly because they are picturing a courtroom. The reality is far gentler than the picture in your head, and knowing what the day actually looks like takes a surprising amount of that dread away. For how long the wait to that hearing tends to be, see our guide to ADP tribunal waiting times.

This guide walks through the hearing itself: who is in the room, how informal it really is, why the empty chair where you expected Social Security Scotland to sit is often just that, what to carry in with you and what happens to your money if you win.

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Where the tribunal sits in the journey

The tribunal is the last formal step, and you only reach it after a re-determination. Quick recap of the timescales, because they matter: you have 42 days from a determination letter to request a re-determination, Social Security Scotland then has 56 days to respond, and once you have the re-determination outcome you have 31 days to lodge an appeal with the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland. If Social Security Scotland missed the 56 day deadline, you get a direct right of appeal without waiting any longer.

Unlike the earlier stages, the tribunal is completely independent of Social Security Scotland. That independence is the whole point of the day, and it is worth holding on to when the nerves build.

Who is actually in the room

An ADP appeal is heard by a panel of three people, not a single judge. Each is there for a different reason:

The three-member panel

The Convener, a legally qualified member who chairs the hearing, keeps it fair and makes sure the law is applied correctly.
The medically qualified member, who understands health conditions and how symptoms affect daily life. They are there to understand you, not to examine you.
The disability qualified member, a person with knowledge or lived experience of disability, who brings a practical sense of what your difficulties actually mean day to day.

There will also usually be a clerk who handles the paperwork and recording. The hearing is recorded, but the recording is only for the tribunal's own use. The three panel members reach the decision between them, and nobody from Social Security Scotland has any part in it.

It is not a court, and it is not meant to feel like one

This is the single thing people are most relieved to learn. The tribunal itself is clear that the hearing will not be very formal and that it is not a court. There are no wigs, no gowns and no witness box. You sit at a table, or you join by phone or video, and the members introduce themselves and usually check how you would like to be addressed. They ask questions in plain language and give you time to answer.

You are allowed support. You can bring a relative or friend along simply to sit with you, and you can also have a representative, such as a welfare rights adviser or a local Citizens Advice Scotland worker, speak on your behalf. If you need an interpreter or a hearing loop, ask for it when you lodge your appeal so it can be arranged in advance.

The empty chair: why Social Security Scotland often does not attend

Many people walk in braced for a confrontation with an official who will argue against them. It frequently does not happen. Social Security Scotland may send a presenting officer, and if one does attend they can ask you questions, but they are not part of the tribunal and have no say in the outcome. In a large number of ADP appeals no presenting officer comes at all, and the hearing simply goes ahead with you and the three panel members.

When there is no one there to challenge you, the hearing can feel less like a fight and more like a conversation with people trying to understand your situation. The panel still tests your evidence carefully, because that is their job, but there is no opponent across the table.

Tip. Whether or not Social Security Scotland attends, prepare as if the panel knows nothing about you beyond the papers. Assume every difficulty needs to be explained out loud, in your own words, because the members can only act on what is in front of them and what you tell them on the day.

Choosing how your hearing happens

You are usually given a choice of format, and there is no wrong answer, only what suits you:

By telephone, where you speak to the panel over a call from home.
By video, joining the three members on a video link.
In person, at one of the tribunal's venues around Scotland.

Some people find a phone or video hearing far less stressful because they can stay in familiar surroundings. Others prefer being in the room so they can read the panel and be sure they are understood. If travel, pain or anxiety would make an in-person day difficult, say so when you are asked to choose.

What to bring, and what to prepare

You do not need to become a legal expert overnight, but a little preparation makes a real difference. Have these ready, and for a phone or video hearing keep them beside you where you are sitting:

Your appeal papers and the tribunal bundle you were sent.
A copy of your ADP application Part 2, so you can see what you originally wrote.
Any supporting information, such as letters from a consultant, GP, community psychiatric nurse or support worker.
An up to date list of your medication.
A few notes about what a typical bad day looks like, activity by activity.

The most useful preparation is thinking through the descriptors again in terms of reliability. Under regulation 7, an activity only counts as something you can do if you can do it safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly and in a reasonable time. If you cannot do it that way on most days, you are treated as unable to do it. Panels ask a lot of "and how often" and "what happens afterwards" questions, so real examples of failing to do something reliably carry more weight than saying you struggle in general.

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What the hearing itself is like

After the introductions, the Convener explains how the hearing will run. You then get the chance to say why you are appealing, and the members ask you questions about your daily living and mobility. The questions can feel personal, because they are about washing, dressing, cooking, getting out and coping with people, but they are asked to build a fair picture, not to catch you out.

Answer for your typical day, not your best one. On the day of a hearing many people instinctively play down their difficulties out of pride or habit. Resist that. If you can only cook a proper meal once a week, or you need someone nearby every time you shower in case you fall, say exactly that. Downplaying your worst days is the most common way a strong appeal is undersold.

Remember there is no physical examination. The medically qualified member may ask about your symptoms and how they behave, but nobody will ask you to walk across the room or demonstrate anything. The panel weighs your account against the descriptors and the reliability test, and that is the whole exercise.

The decision, and what happens if you win

Sometimes the panel will tell you the outcome at the end of the hearing. More often the decision is sent to you in writing afterwards, setting out the points awarded on each activity and the rate of each component. If you win and are awarded, or moved up to a higher rate, the award is normally backdated to the date entitlement should have started, which is generally the date of your original application. In other words, you are not penalised for the time the whole challenge took, and the backdated amount can be substantial.

If your award had been cut, you were probably already covered. Short-term Assistance is paid when an existing ADP award is reduced or stopped and you challenge that determination. It runs through the re-determination and any appeal, and crucially it is not repayable. So if you were topped up by Short-term Assistance while you waited for the tribunal, you keep it whatever the outcome.

If the tribunal does not go your way, that is not necessarily the end. You can ask for a statement of reasons, and in limited circumstances you can seek permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal for Scotland, but only on a point of law rather than simply because you disagree with the result. For most people, though, the First-tier hearing is where the matter is settled, one way or the other.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who sits on an ADP tribunal panel?

Three people: a legally qualified member who chairs the hearing and is called the Convener, a medically qualified member and a member with knowledge or experience of disability. They are independent of Social Security Scotland and reach the decision between them.

Does Social Security Scotland attend the tribunal?

Not always. Social Security Scotland may send a presenting officer who can ask you questions, but they are not part of the tribunal and have no say in the outcome. In many ADP appeals no presenting officer attends and the hearing goes ahead with you and the three-member panel.

Is a Scottish tribunal formal like a court?

No. The tribunal states that the hearing will not be very formal and that it is not a court. The members ask questions in plain language, you can be addressed by your first name if you prefer, and you can bring a friend or relative for support as well as a representative to speak for you.

What should I bring to an ADP tribunal?

Your appeal papers, a copy of your ADP application Part 2, any supporting information such as letters from a consultant or support worker, a list of your medication and notes about a typical bad day. For a phone or video hearing, keep these beside you.

Will they make me do a physical examination?

No. A tribunal hearing is not a medical examination. The medically qualified member may ask about your symptoms but does not examine you. The panel decides on the papers and on what you tell them, tested against the descriptors and the reliability rule in regulation 7.

If I win, is my ADP backdated?

Yes. If the tribunal awards or increases your Adult Disability Payment, the award is normally backdated to when entitlement should have started, generally the date of your original application. If an existing award had been cut and you challenged it, you may also have been receiving Short-term Assistance throughout, which is not repayable.

Sources: First-tier Tribunal for Scotland Social Security Chamber, hearings guidance (socialsecuritychamber.scot). Appeals to the First-tier Tribunal, Adult Disability Payment decision making guidance on socialsecurity.gov.scot and mygov.scot. The Disability Assistance for Working Age People (Scotland) Regulations 2022 (SSI 2022/54), regulation 7 (legislation.gov.uk).