When your attorneys are not enduring

An enduring power of attorney allows a person to appoint someone they trust to make decisions about their personal, health or financial matters at a particular time, for a particular period or when they are unable to make decisions for themselves. It's an important document to have in place to plan for unforeseen circumstances, such as an accident, medical condition or mental illness. However, an enduring power of attorney confers significant legal rights to those who are appointed, and unfortunately, some attorneys mismanage their role. As a result, we are seeing dramatically rising disputes in this area.

An example of the issues that can arise occurred in the case of Pickersgill v Pickersgill & Ors [2019] QSC 268. A mother executed an enduring power of attorney appointing three of her six children as her attorneys for financial and health matters. The relationship between the siblings then broke down along gender lines which led to an argument over the mother and her finances.