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Be appointed financial manager or guardian for someone

We will make the application and get you appointed, so you can act for someone who can no longer decide.

When someone loses capacity without having appointed an attorney, nobody automatically steps into the gap. Not a spouse, not an adult child, not the person who has been doing the caring. Banks freeze accounts, aged care providers ask for authority nobody has, and decisions that need making cannot be made. The answer is an appointment by the tribunal, which can name a financial administrator, a guardian for personal and health decisions, or both.

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The family applies, not a bank

An application brought by the family with a proposed appointee is treated very differently from one brought by an institution.

The right appointment for the decisions

Financial administration and guardianship cover different things, and some situations need both.

Powers explained after the order

An appointee's authority is set by the terms of the order rather than by the title of the role.

What is the difference between a financial administrator and a guardian?

Both are appointed by a tribunal for someone who has lost the capacity to make their own decisions. The division is by subject matter. A financial administrator, sometimes called a manager, deals with money and property: accounts, income, the family home, investments and debts. A guardian deals with personal and lifestyle decisions. That can include where the person lives, the services they receive and, in some appointments, consent to medical treatment. One person can hold both roles, and often the same family member does.

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Do I need this if I am the next of kin?

Yes. Being a spouse, a child or the person doing the caring does not give legal authority over someone else’s finances. Banks, aged care providers and the ATO all need an appointment or a valid enduring document. Next of kin has no standing on its own.

What if there is already a power of attorney?

Then an application may not be needed. A valid enduring power of attorney that covers the decisions in question continues to operate after capacity is lost, which is its purpose. It is worth having it read before assuming it is insufficient.

Can I be both administrator and guardian?

Often, yes. The roles are separate but the same person can hold both, and in family situations that is common. The tribunal decides based on what suits the person concerned, so a proposal explaining why the arrangement works helps.

What if family members disagree about who should be appointed?

The tribunal will decide, and disagreement does not stop an application. It does make the evidence matter more. Where the disagreement is serious, the tribunal can appoint an independent administrator instead, which is usually the outcome nobody wanted.

Find out which appointment you actually need

Tell us what decisions are stuck and what documents exist. We will tell you whether an application is needed, and which one.

Nobody inherits the right to decide for someone else

Someone you care for can no longer manage their own affairs, and there is no valid enduring document in place. You have been handling things informally because somebody had to. At some point a bank, a hospital or an aged care provider asks who has authority, and the answer is nobody. Until an appointment is made, the decisions that matter most cannot properly be made at all.

We will check whether an existing enduring document already gives the authority needed.
We will advise whether you need a financial administrator, a guardian, or both.
We will assemble the medical evidence the tribunal requires on capacity.
We will prepare and lodge the application, and appear at the hearing.
We will advise the appointee on exactly what the order authorises them to do.

The decisions have stopped and nobody has authority to make them

A parent has had a stroke, or a diagnosis has progressed further than anyone expected. Their affairs were never organised, or the document they signed does not cover what is now needed. You have been paying bills from your own account and hoping it sorts itself out. Then the bank asks for authority, or a placement requires a decision, and the informal arrangement stops working.

What's included in your appointment application

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A search for and review of any existing enduring documents.
Advice on which appointment or appointments are required.
Assembly of the medical evidence on capacity.
Preparation and lodgement of the tribunal application.
Appearance at the hearing.
Advice to the appointee on the scope of the order.

What waiting costs

Families usually manage informally for longer than they should, because the alternative feels like a step they are not ready to take.

The cost of waiting is practical. Accounts get frozen when a bank learns of incapacity, and direct debits fail with them. Income that needs to be claimed goes unclaimed. A property that should be sold to fund care cannot be sold. Tax returns go unlodged, because nobody can sign them.

There is a second cost that matters more. Where the family does not apply, someone else may. A public trustee or public advocate can be appointed instead, and so can a relative whose views about care differ from yours. An application made by the family, with a proposed appointee and a plan, is treated very differently. The alternative is one made by a hospital or a bank because nothing else was happening.

From an informal arrangement to an authority that works

We start with whether an application is actually needed. Sometimes a valid enduring document exists and simply has not been located, or covers more than the family realised, which is a much shorter path.

Where an application is required, we prepare it properly. That means the medical evidence of capacity, a clear proposal about who should be appointed and why, and an explanation of what decisions are waiting. We deal with the tribunal process and appear where a hearing is needed. Once the appointment is made, we advise the appointee on what the order actually authorises. An administrator’s powers are set by the order rather than assumed.

How we get an appointment made

Check for an existing document, then apply with evidence and a plan.

Check for a document

We look for an existing enduring appointment first, because it is faster than any application.

Build the application

We assemble the medical evidence, propose an appointee, and set out the decisions that are waiting.

Appear and advise

We take the application through the hearing and explain what the order authorises afterwards.

An application made by the family rather than about it

Applying to have someone declared unable to manage their own affairs is not a step families take lightly. It usually arrives after months of managing quietly and hoping it would not be necessary.

Two of our lawyers are full members of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. Three of our lawyers are recognised in Doyle’s Guide for estate and succession law. We prepare financial administration and guardianship applications, appear at hearings, and advise appointees on the scope of the order afterwards. Where an existing document would do the job, we will tell you that first, because it is faster and easier on everybody.

Our great lawyer guarantee

Six principles we hold to, whatever you bring us and however long it takes.

Take the time

We listen carefully to understand what you want to achieve, then step you through the advice and the documents.

Share our knowledge

We pass on as much as we can, so you can make your own informed decisions.

Stick to our knitting

We only do what we are good at, so you never pay for our learning.

Work as one team

Someone is always available to answer your question or point you the right way.

Fair pricing

A fixed or capped quote for advice and documents, so you do not carry the price risk.

It is your show

We are in it for a front row seat to witness your success, not for our egos.

Get the authority the decisions need

Tell us what decisions are waiting and what documents exist. We will tell you whether an application is needed, prepare it, and take it through the tribunal.

Speak to a lawyer 1300 654 590