Susan’s story
A widow with no children and substantial financial assets, Susan lived alone in her suburban property. Her nephew James lived close by and helped Susan with small tasks, so Susan appointed James as her attorney for financial matters, under an enduring power of attorney document, to make decisions on her behalf.
Susan’s nieces, Lynn and Rachel, however, were concerned when James moved into Susan’s home and used Susan’s funds to build a granny flat for Susan to live in. James also used Susan’s money to make extensive improvements to the house she no longer lived in.
James moves Susan into a granny flat
Lynn and Rachel were particularly worried the granny flat was not a good environment for Susan, and that Susan’s care needs were being neglected. Their concern was confirmed by an aged care assessment report.
The nieces reported the situation to the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT). Based on evidence from Susan’s doctor, QCAT found Susan did not have capacity to make financial decisions for herself.
QCAT appointed Queensland Public Trustee (QPT) as Susan’s financial administrator. QPT was responsible for making financial decisions on Susan’s behalf, and was obligated by law to always act in Susan’s best interests.
Questions over James’ spending
On looking into Susan’s finances, QPT discovered a residential property worth over a million dollars had been purchased using Susan’s money, with James and Susan named as joint tenants on the property title. Joint tenancy meant that should Susan die, James would become the full owner of the property, rather than ownership falling to Susan’s estate.
QPT also found that hundreds of thousands of dollars of Susan’s money had been spent on items that did not appear to benefit Susan. As his aunt’s attorney for financial matters, James was responsible for ensuring Susan’s funds were used in her best interests, keeping accurate records of expenditure and keeping his property, including his money, separate from those of Susan.
QPT takes legal action on Susan’s behalf
To protect Susan’s assets, QPT changed the ownership structure of the newly purchased property to tenants in common. QPT then applied to court seeking that the half-share of the property held by James was, in fact, held in trust for Susan. QPT also argued that James must show how the hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenditure benefitted Susan, or return that money.
The court found in favour of QPT’s arguments, ordering James to transfer full ownership of the property and return the money he had spent to Susan.
Names and some details changed for privacy