Contact us with your comments, complaints and feedback about the Guardianship Tribunal
We appoint legal guardians and financial managers as substitute decisionmakers for people with disabilities over 16 years of age who:
The Guardianship Tribunal does not make an order unless there is a need for a legally appointed substitute decision maker. The Tribunal also consents to certain medical and dental treatments for people who are incapable of consenting for themselves. The Tribunal can review enduring powers of attorney where there is a need to do so in the best interests of the person with a disability.
The Tribunal is committed to treating everyone with respect. Because we are responsible for hearing issues relating to a person’s wellbeing and future happiness, we are very conscious of the need to be responsive and caring in our dealings with everyone. We value and appreciate your comments about how you view the Tribunal and your dealings with us.
If you have some general comments about the level of service and your experience of the hearings, you may wish to send in the feedback form provided in this brochure. If you have specific issues, concerns or complaints, write to the Registrar, Guardianship Tribunal. The Registrar will investigate your concerns and reply to you in writing.
The Tribunal is accountable to the Minister for Disability Services for its administration. You can write to the Minister regarding administrative matters, complaints about staff and so on. However, because the Tribunal is independent, the Minister cannot comment on any decision made by the Tribunal or direct how it should conduct its proceedings or make its decisions.
You can appeal to the Supreme Court if you were a party to the proceedings before the Tribunal. You have a right of appeal if the appeal raises a question of law. The Supreme Court must give its permission for an appeal about questions other than questions of law.
Appeals must be lodged with the Supreme Court within 28 days of receiving the Tribunal’s written orders and reasons for decision. Seek independent legal advice if you wish to appeal. If you want to appeal after 28 days, you must apply to the Supreme Court.
You can appeal to the Administrative Decisions Tribunal against a decision of the Guardianship Tribunal if you were a party to the proceedings before the Tribunal when it made the decision and the decision was about:
You cannot appeal to the Administrative Decisions Tribunal against any other decisions, such as decisions about medical/dental treatment, clinical trials or adjournments.
You can appeal to the Administrative Decisions Tribunal only if the decision was made on or after 28 February 2003 and your appeal raises a question of law. The Administrative Decisions Tribunal must give its permission for an appeal which is not about a question of law.
Appeals must be lodged with the Administrative Decisions Tribunal within 28 days of receiving the Tribunal’s written orders and reasons for decision. If you wish to appeal outside this period, you need to apply to the Administrative Decisions Tribunal.
The Tribunal recommends you wait until you receive the reasons for decision and seek independent legal advice before deciding whether to appeal to the Supreme Court or the Administrative Decisions Tribunal. You cannot appeal to both the Supreme Court and the Administrative Decisions Tribunal about the same decision.
The Tribunal cannot agree to a request for a review of a guardianship order simply because someone is not happy with the Tribunal’s decision. However, anyone who the Tribunal believes has a genuine interest in the person the order is about can write to the Tribunal and ask for a review of the order if:
If you believe a financial management order needs to be changed, you can apply to have the current manager replaced if you are the person the order is about. Someone the Tribunal believes has a genuine concern for the person the order is about can also apply on their behalf. You can also apply to have part of the person’s estate excluded from the order or to include a part of the person’s estate that was previously excluded from the order.
A financial management order can be revoked if you can provide evidence to show that the person the order is about has regained the ability to manage their own affairs. A financial management order can also be revoked if the Tribunal thinks that revoking the order would be in the best interests of the person the order is about.
We are always happy to assist you with any queries or issues relating to the Guardianship Tribunal’s work. You can contact the Tribunal for more information about application forms to review orders. The enquiry service can assist you, if you wish to find out more about:
We welcome your feedback. To obtain a copy of this feedback form either print the feedback form or contact the Guardianship Tribunal's enquiry staff.
Address: 2a Rowntree Street, Balmain, NSW, 2041
Postal Address: Locked Mailbag 9, Balmain NSW 2041
Phone: (02) 9555 8500
Fax: (02) 9555 9049
Tollfree: 1800 463 928
Email: gt@gt.nsw.gov.au
Website: www.gt.nsw.gov.au