ETB

[2020] NSWCATGD 48

NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal

New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation:

ETB [2020] NSWCATGD 48

Hearing dates:

1 September 2020

Date of orders:

2 September 2020

Decision date:

02 September 2020

Jurisdiction:

Guardianship Division

Before:

J S Currie, Senior Member (Legal)

Decision:

The financial management order made on 30 January 2018 is revoked from 2 September 2020. The person appointed as manager of the estate is to pay over or hand over the estate to ETB.

Catchwords:

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT – requested review of financial management order - whether it is in the best interests of the subject person that the financial management order be revoked – informal support to manage estate provided by family – subject person now, on balance, more likely to accept informal support – subject person should be encouraged to live a normal life in the community and be self-reliant – revocation of financial management order consistent with subject person’s best interests – order revoked.

Legislation Cited:

Guardianship Act 1987 (NSW), ss 4, 4(a), 25P(1)-(2)

NSW Trustee and Guardian Act 2005 (NSW), s 39(a)

Cases Cited:

CJ v AKJ [2015] NSWSC 498

G v G [2016] NSWSC 511

GW v Protective Commissioner & Ors [2003] NSW ADTAP 51

H v H [2015] NSW SC 837

Holt v Protective Commissioner (1993) 31 NSWLR 227

M v M [1981] 2 NSWLR 334

McD v McD (1983) 3 NSWLR 81

P v NSW Trustee and Guardian [2015] NSWSC 579

Re W and L (Parameters of Estate Management Orders) [2014] NSWSC 1106

Texts Cited:

Nil

Category:

Principal judgment

Parties:

002: Review or Revoke Financial Management Order

ETB (protected person, applicant)
SZB (appointed financial manager)
EYH (spouse)
NSW Trustee and Guardian (statutory party)

Representation:

Nil

File Number(s):

NCAT 2018/00003394

Publication restriction:

Decisions of the Guardianship Division of the Civil and Administrative Tribunal have been anonymised to remove any information that may identify any person involved in the Tribunal’s proceedings: Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013 (NSW), s 65.

REASONS FOR DECISION

APPLICATION TO REVIEW OR REVOKE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT ORDER

Background

1. ETB, aged 64 years, has applied to the Tribunal seeking the revocation of a financial management order made for him on 19 November 2018. Under that order ETB’s son SZB was appointed as his financial manager, subject to the authority and direction of NSW Trustee and Guardian (“NSW Trustee”).

2. At the hearing at which that order was made, the Tribunal accepted expert evidence that ETB had a mixed mood state characterised by mania with a history of visual hallucinations, erratic behaviours and probable comorbid cannabis dependence, with the likelihood of a depressive disorder.

3. ETB has a wife EYH, who presently lives separately from him. They both live on the north coast of New South Wales. ETB’s two sons are SZB, who is a Solicitor practising and living in Sydney and Mr Z, who lives on the north coast of New South Wales.

4. Under ETB’s current application he seeks the revocation of the financial management order on the ground that he…