You do not have to be a party to the proceedings to attend and give evidence at a hearing conducted by the Tribunal. You do not have to be a party to the proceedings to be considered for appointment as a guardian or financial manager.
Many people who know the person who the application is about and have an interest in the person’s welfare may have relevant information or views to put to the Tribunal. In most cases people attend the hearing to give evidence as a witness before the Tribunal.
If you attend as a witness, you can give evidence to the Tribunal. The Tribunal can require people to give evidence. You can be questioned by the parties to the proceedings at the hearing. You will hear the evidence presented to the Tribunal and have an opportunity to suggest questions the Tribunal may ask if it considers them relevant and appropriate. As a witness, you do not have a right to appeal against the Tribunal’s decision.
If you do not automatically qualify as a party and you want to become a party to a proceeding before the Tribunal, you will have to satisfy the Tribunal that you have:
You should discuss your wish to be joined as a party to the proceedings with the Tribunal’s staff. As soon as possible, complete and submit a Request to be Joined as a Party form.
The Tribunal will want to know your relationship to the person the application or review is about and why it is appropriate that you become a party in addition to being a witness at the hearing.
If your request is received more than five working days before the hearing, it will usually be considered by a single Tribunal member before the hearing of the application or review.
Requests received less than five working days before the hearing will usually be considered at the beginning of the hearing.
If the Tribunal is satisfied as to the tests set out above, you will be joined as a party under Section 57A of the Guardianship Act or Section 35(3) of the Powers of Attorney Act 2003.
Note that Section 68(1C) of the Guardianship Act states that the Tribunal is not required to provide reasons for its decision about whether to join someone as a party, unless a party to the proceedings requests reasons within 14 days of the Tribunal’s decision or the person lodges an appeal against the Tribunal’s decision with the Supreme Court.
Section 3F of the Guardianship Act identifies who the parties are to any guardianship or financial management matter before the Tribunal. This varies depending on the type of matter that is being considered. The person the order or application is about, their spouse, carer (excluding paid carers) and the applicant are always parties. If the matter is a review of an enduring power of attorney, then the parties are the applicant, the attorney(s) and the person who made the enduring power of attorney.
If a person is a party to an application or review, they are entitled to:
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Email: gt@gt.nsw.gov.au
Website: http://www.gt.nsw.gov.au