Guardianship and administration

Office of the Public Guardian

If a young person you are working with has impaired decision making capacity, you may need to make a referral to the Office of the Public Guardian for a young person to be appointed a public guardian when they turn 18 regarding their health, medical and legal decisions.

The Office of the Public Guardian’s charter as outlined on their website is:

• make personal, health and legal decisions (not related to property or finance) if the Public Guardian is their guardian or attorney
• investigate allegations of abuse, neglect or exploitation of adults with impaired decision-making capacity
• advocate and mediate on behalf of adults with impaired decision-making capacity
• educate the public on the guardianship and attorney systems.

For further information on the OPG and supporting a young person with impaired decision making capacity, visit the Office of the Public Guardian website and refer to Procedure 5 Support a young person with impaired decision-making capacity.

Public Trustee

If a young person you are working with has impaired decision making, you may need to make a referral to the Public Trustee for the young person to be appointed an administrator. “An Administrator is appointed by the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal to make financial decisions, and legal decisions related to financial matters, on behalf of an adult who is unable to do so themselves”. (The State of Queensland, 2016). For further information on the Public Trustee and financial administration, visit the Public Trustee website.