Guardianship and Administration Applications at VCAT in Victoria

Table of Contents

1. The direct answer
2. What is guardianship?
3. What is administration?
4. What is supportive guardianship?
5. What is supportive administration?
6. Guardian versus administrator
7. Supported versus substitute decision-making
8. The current Victorian legal framework
9. General principles under the 2019 Act
10. Decision-making principles
11. What is decision-making capacity?
12. Capacity considerations table
13. Personal, financial, legal and medical matters
14. Powers of attorney
15. Litigation guardians
16. When an application may be appropriate
17. When an application may be unnecessary
18. Less restrictive alternatives
19. Less-restrictive-alternatives table
20. Comparison of appointments
21. Urgent applications
22. Who may apply, and notice
23. Preparing and lodging an application
24. Evidence checklist
25. Application-process table
26. What happens at the hearing
27. Confidentiality and publication
28. Who may be appointed
29. Scope of a guardianship order
30. Scope of an administration order
31. Duties of guardians and administrators
32. Reassessment, variation and cancellation
33. Rehearings, reasons and appeals
34. Interstate orders
35. Common mistakes
36. Practical action plan
37. Worked hypothetical examples
38. When urgent legal advice is required
39. Conclusion
40. Frequently asked questions

The direct answer

VCAT can appoint a guardian to make specified personal decisions, or an administrator to make specified financial or legal decisions, for an adult who lacks decision-making capacity for those particular matters and for whom an order is needed. An order is not automatic because a person has disability, illness or dementia, and is not made merely in case a future decision might arise. The application must identify a decision that needs to be made and explain why no less restrictive alternative — informal support, a supportive appointment, an existing enduring power of attorney, bank arrangements, an NDIS nominee, advance care planning or the statutory medical-treatment decision-maker — will adequately meet the need.

Decision-making capacity must be assessed for the particular matter, with practicable support provided first; capacity may differ for different decisions and may fluctuate. VCAT considers the person's will and preferences and must make the least restrictive order necessary. Supportive guardianship and supportive administration are designed for adults who can make their own decisions with assistance. Medical evidence is often important but does not replace the legal test — VCAT decides the legal question. Urgent legal advice may be required where there is immediate risk, family conflict, suspected exploitation or an existing enduring power of attorney. Our wills and estate planning team and litigation and dispute resolution team act for applicants, proposed represented persons, existing attorneys, families and appointees in VCAT Guardianship List proceedings, including reassessments, variations, cancellations and rehearings. This article is reviewed by Julian McIntyre, Associate. It is general information only and does not constitute legal advice tailored to any particular person or family.

What is guardianship?

Guardianship in Victoria is a statutory mechanism under the Guardianship and Administration Act 2019 (Vic) that permits VCAT to appoint a guardian to make specified personal or lifestyle decisions for an adult who, at the time of the order, lacks decision-making capacity for those particular matters and for whom an order is needed. The guardian acts within the limits of the order, applying the statutory decision-making principles, and is accountable to VCAT.

Guardianship is not a status that strips an adult of all decision-making rights. It is a targeted authority, confined to the matters identified in the order, that exists because a specific personal decision needs to be made and cannot adequately be made by the adult themselves — with support — or under any other available arrangement. The Act treats guardianship as a last resort, not a routine response to disability, ageing or family disagreement.

What is administration?

Administration is the financial and legal counterpart to guardianship. VCAT may appoint an administrator to make specified financial or legal decisions for an adult who lacks decision-making capacity for those matters and for whom an order is needed. The administrator's authority is confined to the matters in the order and is subject to the Act's principles, to VCAT supervision, to a required Financial Statement and Plan and, ordinarily, to annual accounts.

Administration is not a general financial power of attorney granted by VCAT. It exists because particular financial or legal decisions need to be made — paying for accommodation, dealing with property, managing income and expenses, addressing a contract, conducting authorised legal proceedings — and cannot adequately be handled in any less restrictive way.

What is supportive guardianship?

The Guardianship and Administration Act 2019 (Vic) introduced supportive guardianship to recognise that many adults can make their own personal decisions with assistance. A supportive guardian is appointed to help the represented person obtain information, communicate decisions to others, deal with services and put those decisions into effect. The supportive guardian does not substitute their own decision; the adult remains the decision-maker.

Supportive guardianship is appropriate where the adult has the ability to make personal decisions with practical assistance, where the need is for support rather than substitute decision-making and where a formal supportive role is genuinely required — for example, because service providers will not act on the adult's communicated wishes without authority. Where informal support adequately meets the need, no order should be made.

What is supportive administration?

A supportive administrator is appointed to assist an adult to make and implement their own financial decisions — for example, to obtain financial information, communicate with banks, complete forms or implement chosen transactions. The adult retains capacity for the relevant financial decisions; the supporter helps the adult exercise that capacity in practice.

Supportive administration is not a substitute order. If the adult cannot make the financial decision in question even with practicable support, supportive administration is not the right tool, and a full administration order (or an alternative arrangement such as an existing enduring power of attorney) may need to be considered. The role and limits of a supportive administrator should be explained clearly to banks, service providers and family members.

Guardian versus administrator

A guardian deals with personal matters; an administrator deals with financial and legal matters. The two roles are conceptually distinct, even where one person fills both. Each requires VCAT to be satisfied of the statutory test for that order, and each is bounded by the order's express terms. A guardian cannot sign a contract for the sale of the represented person's home, and an administrator cannot decide where the represented person will live unless that authority is properly within the order. The distinction matters in day-to-day practice because banks, service providers, health practitioners and accommodation providers all need to understand which appointee can authorise which decision.

Supported versus substitute decision-making

Supported decision-making is the default. Substitute decision-making — guardianship or administration — is available only where, with the support that can practicably be provided, the adult still lacks decision-making capacity for the particular matter and an order is needed. Supportive guardianship and supportive administration sit between informal support and substitute decision-making, recognising that many adults can make their own decisions with assistance and should be given the formal scaffolding to do so where informal arrangements fail.

Practical examples illustrate the line. A person who can choose where to live but cannot understand a complex sale of real estate may need supportive arrangements for accommodation and an administration order limited to the property transaction. A person who can make day-to-day spending decisions but cannot evaluate a long-term investment proposal does not need substitute control of routine spending. The Act requires VCAT to consider these gradations carefully rather than reach for the broadest available order.

The current Victorian legal framework

The principal Act is the Guardianship and Administration Act 2019 (Vic). The current authorised version on the Victorian Legislation website took effect on 15 April 2026, and that authorised version should be consulted for the precise current text of every provision. The Act replaced the Guardianship and Administration Act 1986 (Vic). Orders made under the previous Act may still exist as transitional orders, but the 1986 Act is not the current law and should not be presented as such.

Several other Acts operate alongside the 2019 Act and need to be considered in any application or appointment:

• Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 (Vic) — establishes VCAT, its procedure, rehearings and appeal rights.
• Powers of Attorney Act 2014 (Vic) — governs enduring powers of attorney, supportive attorneys and the Tribunal's powers in relation to those instruments.
• Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 (Vic) — establishes the medical-treatment decision-maker regime and advance care directives.
• Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic) — requires public authorities to act compatibly with human rights including equal recognition and protection from arbitrary interference with private and family life.
• Disability Act 2006 (Vic) — relevant where the represented person uses disability services.
• Public Advocate Act 1986 (Vic) and current Office of the Public Advocate guidance — explains the Public Advocate's investigative, advocacy and last-resort guardianship role.
• Privacy, health-record and confidentiality legislation — applies to medical and financial material obtained in or for VCAT proceedings.

The Act should be read with current VCAT Guardianship List forms, practice information and procedural guidance, current Office of the Public Advocate guidance, current State Trustees information where relevant and the current VCAT fee regulations and exemptions in force at the time of the application.

General principles under the 2019 Act

The Act sets out general principles that apply to anyone exercising a function or duty under the Act — VCAT members, guardians, administrators, supportive appointees, the Public Advocate and others. The principles include:

• the presumption that every adult has decision-making capacity unless evidence establishes otherwise;
• respect for the inherent dignity and worth of every adult;
• recognition of human rights;
• the right of an adult to make decisions, including decisions others may regard as unwise;
• recognition of the importance of personal and social wellbeing;
• recognition that capacity is specific to the matter and may fluctuate;
• the requirement to provide practicable support to enable an adult to make and communicate decisions;
• recognition of communication by speech, gestures or other means; and
• protection from neglect, abuse and exploitation balanced against the requirement to choose the least restrictive option.

These principles are not aspirational language; they shape the construction of the Act and the way decisions are made under it.

Decision-making principles

When VCAT decides whether to make an order and what terms to include, and when a guardian, administrator or supportive appointee makes a decision under the Act, the decision-making principles in the Act must be applied. They include:

• the requirement to ascertain and give effect, so far as possible, to the adult's will and preferences;
• past expressions of will and preferences where current views cannot be ascertained;
• support for the adult to participate in decisions;
• the need to act in a way that promotes the adult's personal and social wellbeing;
• consideration of the adult's cultural, linguistic and religious background;
• recognition of the adult's relationships with family, friends and carers;
• development or recovery of decision-making capacity;
• the least restrictive intervention; and
• protection from harm where the adult's will and preferences would result in serious harm and there is no other practicable way to prevent that harm.

The principles must be considered together rather than in isolation. A decision-maker who acts only on their view of the adult's best interests, without first seeking and respecting the adult's will and preferences, is not applying the Act correctly.

What is decision-making capacity?

Decision-making capacity under the Guardianship and Administration Act 2019 (Vic) means, in summary, the ability of an adult to:

• understand the information relevant to a particular decision and the effect of the decision;
• retain that information to the extent necessary to make the decision;
• use or weigh the information as part of the process of making the decision; and
• communicate the decision in any way, including by speech, gestures or other means.

The Act treats capacity as decision-specific. A person may have capacity for some decisions and not others, and capacity may fluctuate over time. The Act requires practicable support to be provided as part of the assessment — communication assistance, plain-language explanation, an interpreter, additional time, a suitable time of day, a trusted support person and information provided in stages. The presumption is capacity; the evidentiary burden of displacing that presumption rests on those asserting incapacity.

VCAT, not a medical practitioner, decides the legal question of capacity. Medical and specialist material is often very important — particularly where cognition, insight, executive function, communication or fluctuation is in issue — but a brief opinion, a mini-mental state score or a diagnostic label is not the statutory test. Functional information from people who know the adult, evidence of decisions the adult has made with and without support and the adult's own account often carry significant weight.

Capacity considerations table

A short screening tool is not a substitute for the statutory test. The questions above should be applied to the actual decision and the actual support that can be provided.

Personal, financial, legal and medical matters

Personal matters are decisions about an adult's lifestyle and daily life — for example, accommodation, access to services, daily-living arrangements, health care that falls within the order and access to particular persons. A guardian's authority in any given case extends only to those personal matters stated in the order.

Financial matters are decisions about an adult's financial affairs — receiving income, paying expenses, managing accounts, investments, property, contracts, business interests, leases and tax matters. An administrator may act only within the financial matters stated in the order.

Legal matters include legal proceedings and other legal decisions affecting the adult. Some legal matters may be authorised within an administration order; some require separate consideration; and some require court appointment of a litigation guardian.

Medical-treatment decisions are governed primarily by the Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 (Vic), which establishes a separate statutory regime including the role of the medical treatment decision-maker, advance care directives, instructional and values directives. A guardianship order is not always required for medical decisions. The statutory hierarchy of medical-treatment decision-makers should be checked against the current Act; this article does not reproduce a complete advance-care-planning guide.

Powers of attorney

Enduring powers of attorney under the Powers of Attorney Act 2014 (Vic) are advance appointments made by an adult, while the adult has decision-making capacity, to give an attorney authority to act on the adult's behalf for the personal or financial matters described in the document, in accordance with its terms. Powers of attorney are an important less restrictive alternative to guardianship or administration and may also be an existing authority that VCAT must consider when an application is made.

This article does not reproduce the full enduring-power-of-attorney guide. Readers seeking detailed coverage of making, using, supervising and ending an enduring power of attorney should read our guide to powers of attorney in Victoria, our guide to common enduring-power-of-attorney mistakes, our guide to revoking an enduring power of attorney and our guide to attorney abuse in Victoria. VCAT has separate jurisdiction in relation to enduring powers of attorney, including powers to require accounts, to suspend or revoke the appointment, to order compensation and to address misconduct.

Litigation guardians

A litigation guardian is appointed under court or tribunal rules to conduct legal proceedings on behalf of a person who cannot conduct or instruct in the proceedings — for example, because of capacity issues, being a child, or other procedural rules. A litigation guardian is not the same as a guardian appointed by VCAT for personal matters and does not provide general personal or financial authority outside the proceeding. Where legal proceedings are anticipated for a person who may lack capacity to instruct, advice should be obtained about whether a litigation guardian, an administration order, both or neither is appropriate.

When an application may be appropriate

A VCAT application may be appropriate where there is a specific personal, financial or legal decision that needs to be made; where, with practicable support, the adult cannot make that decision; and where no less restrictive alternative will adequately meet the need. Typical situations include:

• an immediate accommodation decision and no valid power of attorney covers it;
• an urgent financial decision — for example, a property sale or contract — that cannot be made by the adult and is not covered by an existing valid authority;
• concerns that an existing attorney is not acting appropriately and supervision is required;
• suspected financial exploitation that requires protective intervention and existing safeguards are inadequate;
• a service or accommodation dispute where no authorised decision-maker is in place;
• a hospital-discharge decision the adult cannot make with support and the medical-treatment regime does not adequately address; or
• an adult who can make decisions with support but for whom service providers will not act without a formal supportive appointment.

When an application may be unnecessary

Many applications are unnecessary. Common situations where no order should be sought include:

• the adult can make the relevant decision, with or without informal support;
• a valid enduring power of attorney is in place and the attorney is willing and acting appropriately;
• a medical-treatment decision is involved and the statutory medical-treatment decision-maker regime adequately addresses it;
• family members want access to medical or financial information but no decision actually needs to be made;
• family conflict exists about an unwise but competent decision the adult is making;
• the underlying problem is conflict between relatives rather than the adult's incapacity;
• the application is being used to circumvent an adult's choice that relatives disapprove of;
• the need is for advocacy or communication support rather than substitute decision-making.

Where an application is unnecessary, VCAT may decline to make an order. Bringing an unnecessary application also has personal cost for the adult, who is required to participate in proceedings about their own decision-making.

Less restrictive alternatives

The Act requires VCAT to consider whether the need can be met by an arrangement less restrictive of the adult's freedom of decision and action. Common alternatives include:

• Informal family support — practical assistance with reading mail, attending appointments, navigating services and recording decisions, where the adult retains capacity and accepts the help.
• Supportive attorneys under the Powers of Attorney Act 2014 — formal appointments by the adult to support decision-making while the adult retains capacity.
• Supportive guardianship or administration — VCAT-appointed supporters where formal authority for support is genuinely required.
• Enduring powers of attorney — already-made appointments operating in accordance with their terms.
• Banking and service-provider arrangements — third-party authorities, direct debits, joint accounts (with caution), recurring service authorities and similar tools for routine matters.
• NDIS nominees and service arrangements — decision-making within the NDIS scheme.
• Advance care planning — instructional and values directives under the Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 (Vic).
• Family agreement and practical assistance — written arrangements within families about who will assist with what, recognising they create no legal authority.
• Court or tribunal litigation guardian — for the conduct of legal proceedings only.

An alternative is only adequate if it actually meets the need in the circumstances. The existence of a valid enduring power of attorney, for example, does not solve a problem if the attorney is unwilling to act, refuses to engage with services or is suspected of misconduct. Each alternative must be examined for fit and not assumed to dispose of the application.

Less-restrictive-alternatives table

The existence of an alternative does not automatically resolve every case; its practical adequacy must be examined.

Comparison of appointments

Every row should be qualified by the actual order or instrument in the particular case.

Urgent applications

Urgency may arise from imminent financial loss, an impending property transaction, unpaid accommodation or care costs, suspected exploitation, an immediate accommodation risk, hospital discharge, loss of essential services, an urgent contract or legal deadline, an existing attorney being unable or unwilling to act or an immediate threat of serious harm. Genuine urgency calls for prompt action; family preference, convenience or the desire to pre-empt an unwise but competent decision is not urgency.

VCAT can prioritise urgent applications and make interim arrangements pending a full hearing. Specific timeframes are not promised here; the current VCAT urgent-application procedures and forms should be checked at the time. Where genuine urgency exists, an application should not be delayed while every piece of optional evidence is gathered — the focus should be on the immediate decision and the minimum evidence required to support an interim arrangement.

Who may apply, and notice

Any person with a sufficient interest in the welfare of the proposed represented person may apply, including the adult themselves, a relative, a carer, a friend, a service provider, a treating health practitioner, the Public Advocate, an existing attorney or, in defined circumstances, an organisation. The application is not confined to next-of-kin and the applicant has no priority for appointment.

People with a direct interest are ordinarily entitled to notice — including close relatives, existing attorneys, supportive attorneys, accommodation providers and others identified by the applicant or by VCAT. Attempts to keep the application secret from close relatives or from an existing attorney are generally inconsistent with VCAT procedure. The Tribunal may join additional parties and may direct that further interested persons be notified.

Preparing and lodging an application

An application is lodged using the current VCAT application form for guardianship and administration (the form, supporting checklist and any current online application pathway should be obtained from the VCAT website at the time of the application). The application requires details of the proposed represented person, the decision that needs to be made, existing arrangements and supports, capacity information, the proposed type of order, the proposed appointee, any conflicts of interest and the people who should receive notice.

VCAT currently requires applicants to provide supporting documents to the relevant parties and places express emphasis on information about the person's will and preferences. The application is the first opportunity to demonstrate that less restrictive alternatives have been considered and to put the adult's perspective at the centre of the materials — not an afterthought to a medical report.

Evidence checklist

• current application form completed in full;
• a clear statement of the precise decision requiring attention;
• medical or specialist reports, where required;
• functional capacity evidence describing what the adult can and cannot do in practice;
• details of the practical support already provided and the adult's response to it;
• evidence of fluctuating capacity where relevant;
• the adult's own account, in their own words wherever possible;
• will and preferences worksheet or equivalent information;
• family and carer evidence;
• accommodation or service-provider information;
• any current enduring powers of attorney and their terms;
• any supportive appointments;
• any advance care directive;
• financial statements, where relevant to administration;
• property information;
• debts and liabilities;
• contracts and any pending legal proceedings;
• evidence of suspected exploitation where alleged;
• police, bank or regulatory correspondence where relevant;
• the proposed appointee's consent;
• the proposed appointee's experience and suitability;
• any conflicts of interest;
• alternative proposals (including any opposing proposal);
• the risk if no order is made;
• the proposed scope and duration of the order;
• accessibility, interpreter or support requirements for the hearing.

Applicants should resist gathering excessive private information that is unrelated to the decisions in issue. The principle of proportionality applies to evidence as well as to the order itself.

Application-process table

What happens at the hearing

The person who is the subject of the application is a party to the proceeding and should ordinarily have a genuine opportunity to participate. The proposed appointee may be a party; other interested people may be joined; people with a direct interest may receive notice. VCAT may contact the adult before the hearing and may request an investigation or report from the Office of the Public Advocate. Interpreters, communication support and accessibility arrangements may be available, and hearings may occur in person, by telephone or by video.

At the hearing, the member will identify the issues, ensure parties understand the procedure, hear the evidence, consider the statutory criteria and the decision-making principles and decide whether to make, refuse, limit or adjourn the proposed order. Parties can call evidence, cross-examine, make submissions and propose alternatives. Procedural fairness is a fundamental feature, and a party who feels that a decision is being made without the chance to respond should say so on the record.

Confidentiality and publication

Guardianship proceedings involve highly sensitive information. VCAT explains that relevant case material must be shared with the parties to the proceeding, but identifying information must not be published where prohibited by legislation. Confidentiality of particular documents may be sought from VCAT in appropriate circumstances. Parties should not promise complete secrecy, and documents obtained through the proceeding should not be used for unrelated purposes without lawful authority. Private medical and financial records must be handled securely throughout.

Who may be appointed

VCAT may appoint a person who is willing to act, who is over 18, who can perform the duties and who is suitable in light of the adult's wishes, family relationships, trust, availability, communication, the absence of unmanaged conflicts and the proposed scope of the order. For administration, financial skill, integrity and the ability to maintain accounts are particularly important. Joint or multiple appointments are available in defined circumstances and may be suitable where the appointees can cooperate constructively.

Where no suitable private appointee is available, VCAT may appoint the Public Advocate as guardian of last resort or State Trustees (or another professional trustee company) as administrator. The applicant has no automatic priority; family relationship does not create entitlement; professional qualifications do not on their own establish suitability; and family disagreement does not automatically require a public appointee.

Scope of a guardianship order

A guardian's authority is confined to the personal matters stated in the order. Possible matters, subject to the actual order, may include accommodation, access to services, health care that falls within the order, access to persons, daily-living arrangements and other specified personal matters. A guardian does not automatically receive all available powers and does not automatically control finances, the adult's Will, voting, marriage, every medical decision, legal proceedings or decisions outside the order.

A guardian must read the order carefully and act within it. Where a decision falls outside the order, the guardian should not purport to make it and should consider whether a variation, a further application, advice from VCAT, the Public Advocate or independent legal advice is required.

Scope of an administration order

An administrator's authority is confined to the financial and legal matters stated in the order. Possible powers, subject to the actual order and the legislation, may include receiving income, paying expenses, managing accounts, dealing with property (including sale or leasing where authorised), making or completing contracts, investments, running a business and authorised legal proceedings. Orders may restrict particular transactions and may require VCAT advice or a further application before particular actions such as litigation or property sales.

VCAT states that administrators must submit a Financial Statement and Plan after appointment and provide annual accounts, while orders may restrict transactions such as litigation or property sales. The current requirements for the Financial Statement and Plan, annual accounts, the format and the cycle should be checked against the current VCAT material at the time of appointment and at each reporting date.

Duties of guardians and administrators

Guardians and administrators owe statutory duties under the Guardianship and Administration Act 2019 (Vic), including duties to:

• act honestly, diligently and in good faith;
• act within the powers stated in the order;
• apply the decision-making principles;
• ascertain and give effect, so far as possible, to the adult's will and preferences;
• act in a way that promotes the adult's personal and social wellbeing;
• act compatibly with relevant human rights;
• avoid conflicts and personal benefit unless properly authorised;
• keep proper records;
• maintain confidentiality of sensitive information except as required for proper performance of the role;
• seek advice or further direction from VCAT where genuinely needed; and
• account to VCAT where required.

Administrators owe particular duties in relation to the management of funds — keeping the adult's funds separate from the administrator's own, investing prudently, keeping records of all receipts and payments, providing accounts and not deriving personal benefit. The serious-harm exception applies in defined circumstances and is not a general licence to override the adult's will and preferences.

Reassessment, variation and cancellation

Orders are not necessarily permanent. VCAT periodically reassesses orders and may reassess earlier on application or on its own motion. An order may be varied or cancelled where it is no longer needed or suitable — for example, where the adult has regained capacity, where the need for the decision has ended, where the appointee has become unwilling, unable or unsuitable or where a less restrictive option has become available. The scope of authority may also be changed to reflect current circumstances.

VCAT currently states that guardianship and supportive orders are usually reassessed at least annually and administration orders at least every three years, subject to the legislation and the particular order. The precise current legal requirements should be verified before publication of any time-sensitive advice; this article does not promise any particular cycle. The Tribunal can also be asked to advise an administrator about a particular question, to make consequential orders and to deal with rehearings, appeals and complaints about misconduct.

Rehearings, reasons and appeals

VCAT decisions can in defined circumstances be the subject of a request for written reasons, a request for rehearing within the Tribunal and an appeal on a question of law to the Supreme Court of Victoria under the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 (Vic). The procedural rules and time limits are strict. A party affected by a decision should seek legal advice promptly so that any rehearing or appeal rights are preserved and the relevant material is assembled within time.

Interstate orders

Adults move between jurisdictions, and orders made in one Australian state or territory may need to be recognised, registered or replaced in another. Recognition of interstate guardianship and administration orders is addressed by Commonwealth and state legislation and may involve practical issues including evidence of the interstate order, the scope of recognition and any need to obtain a Victorian order. Where an interstate order is in issue, current legal advice is essential because the procedures and recognition rules differ between jurisdictions.

Common mistakes

• assuming a diagnosis proves incapacity;
• seeking a broad order without identifying a current decision;
• ignoring the adult's views;
• failing to provide communication support before assessing capacity;
• treating family preference as the adult's preference;
• failing to consider an existing enduring power of attorney;
• confusing personal and financial authority;
• assuming guardianship is required for all medical decisions;
• applying merely to obtain access to private information;
• using guardianship to resolve ordinary family conflict;
• nominating an appointee with an unmanaged conflict of interest;
• relying on a vague or outdated medical report;
• omitting important relatives or interested persons from notice;
• withholding documents from parties;
• seeking unlimited authority where a limited order would suffice;
• failing to identify less restrictive alternatives;
• assuming the order gives powers not written in it;
• failing to keep administrator records;
• mixing the represented person's funds with the administrator's personal funds;
• failing to seek reassessment after circumstances change;
• presenting the adult only as a risk rather than as a rights-holder.

Practical action plan

1. identify the exact decision requiring attention;
2. speak with and support the adult to express their wishes;
3. assess whether the adult can make the decision with practicable assistance;
4. identify any existing attorneys, nominees and decision-makers;
5. test less restrictive practical alternatives;
6. gather current functional and medical evidence;
7. document the adult's will and preferences;
8. identify any immediate risk or urgency;
9. choose the correct order and proposed powers;
10. assess the proposed appointee's suitability and any conflicts;
11. prepare accurate financial or personal evidence;
12. lodge through the current VCAT process;
13. notify and provide documents as directed;
14. arrange interpreters, accessibility and support for the hearing;
15. prepare evidence addressing every statutory criterion;
16. review the precise order after the hearing;
17. comply with reporting and recordkeeping obligations; and
18. seek reassessment when the need, capacity or circumstances change.

Worked hypothetical examples

The following examples are illustrative only. They are not decided cases and outcomes in real proceedings depend on the actual facts, the evidence and the decision-maker's application of the Act.

• Older parent with dementia and a proposed property sale — an adult with moderate dementia continues to manage daily spending and choose meals but cannot understand a proposed sale of the family home. A targeted administration order limited to the property transaction, with informal support for routine matters, may be more appropriate than a broad order.
• Adult with intellectual disability and accommodation decision — an adult with intellectual disability can decide where to live with communication support. A supportive guardianship order may be appropriate; a full guardianship order may not be needed.
• Family disagreement about parent's accommodation — adult children disagree about where a parent should live. The parent has capacity for the decision. Family conflict does not authorise an order.
• Suspected attorney misconduct — an existing attorney is suspected of transferring money for personal benefit. Action under the Powers of Attorney Act 2014, an administration application, accounts under section dealing with attorney supervision and possible police involvement may all be relevant.
• Hospital discharge — a person in hospital needs an urgent accommodation decision and cannot make it with support. An urgent guardianship application limited to accommodation may be appropriate.
• Fluctuating capacity after illness — a person has fluctuating capacity following a serious illness. A short, limited order may be considered, with explicit consideration of when reassessment should occur.
• Application made to obtain medical information — relatives apply for guardianship to obtain medical information about a parent. If no decision needs to be made, the application is unlikely to succeed; the medical-treatment regime and privacy legislation should be considered.
• Valid enduring attorney willing to act — a valid enduring attorney is able and willing to manage finances appropriately. An administration order is unlikely to be necessary in the absence of misconduct or other reason for supervision.
• Conflicted proposed administrator — a proposed administrator has a significant financial conflict. VCAT may decline to appoint that person or impose conditions, and may appoint State Trustees instead.
• Adult wanting support with banking only — an adult wants assistance with banking and does not want substitute decision-making. A supportive appointment, banking authority or NDIS-style arrangement may meet the need.
• Broad application where only one service decision is required — a broad guardianship application is sought where only one service decision is in issue. The order, if made, should be limited accordingly.
• Reassessment after recovery — a represented person has regained capacity and seeks cancellation. The order may be cancelled or substantially limited; supportive arrangements may continue if helpful.
• Proposed sale of represented person's home — an administrator wishes to sell the represented person's home. The order, the adult's will and preferences and the need for VCAT advice or further authority should be considered carefully.
• Adult opposing the application — an adult opposes the application and proposes a less restrictive alternative. The Tribunal should consider that alternative seriously rather than treat opposition as evidence of incapacity.
• Family seeking control of unwise but competent decision — relatives seek control because they disagree with an unwise but competent decision the adult is making. The Act protects the right to make unwise decisions where capacity exists.

When urgent legal advice is required

Legal advice should be obtained urgently where an order is opposed, where there is significant family conflict, where suspected financial abuse is involved, where complex financial decisions or property sales are required, where an enduring power of attorney is challenged, where capacity is in genuine dispute, where urgent applications are required, where regulators, banks or police are already engaged and before any reassessment, appeal or substantial administrative decision. Late advice is materially less useful than early advice and can substantially affect the evidentiary and procedural landscape.

Conclusion

Guardianship and administration at VCAT are powerful mechanisms, but they are not the default Victorian response to disability, ageing or family conflict. The Guardianship and Administration Act 2019 (Vic), authorised version effective 15 April 2026, requires VCAT and every decision-maker under the Act to presume capacity, provide practicable support, assess capacity for the particular decision, consider less restrictive alternatives, place the adult's will and preferences at the centre of the decision and make the least restrictive order necessary.

Applications that identify a real decision, present careful capacity evidence, consider every practical alternative and propose a limited order tailored to the actual need are far more likely to produce a constructive outcome for the adult and the family than applications that seek broad authority on the basis of a diagnosis. Our wills and estate planning team and our litigation and dispute resolution team, led on this article by Julian McIntyre, Associate, advise applicants, proposed represented persons, existing attorneys and appointees in VCAT proceedings in Victoria.