Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988, ss 7, 26, 27

The Family Court can make decisions on your behalf by making a Personal or Property Order.

Anyone who has a concern about your welfare can ask the Family Court to make a Personal Order or Property Order, including:

• a family or whānau member, including relatives such as grandchildren and nieces/nephews
• a doctor, a social worker from Oranga Tamariki, or the manager of any hospital, rest home or other place where you’re being cared for
• anyone you’ve appointed as an attorney in an EPA (see: “Enduring powers of attorney”)
• if you have a property manager, they can apply for a Personal Order (they can’t apply for a Property Order because that’s already their role)
• if you have a welfare guardian, they can apply for a Property Order (they can’t apply for a Personal Order because that’s already their role)
• any non-profit group that supports people who’ve lost mental capacity
• a trustee company, like the Public Trust or the Māori Trustee/Te Tumu Paeroa, or
• any other person who gets the Family Court’s permission to apply.

Not necessarily, but it’s a good idea to talk to a lawyer anyway. If someone applies for a Personal or Property Order about you, you’ll be given a lawyer if you don’t have one already (see: “Who’ll speak up for me and what I want to happen?”).

If you can’t afford a lawyer, you might qualify for Legal Aid (see: “Legal Aid”).

Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988, ss 32, 33, 34

An alternative to going to court is to apply directly to a trustee company. You can ask the trustee company to manage your property on your behalf.

You can do this if you’ve lost (or partly lost) your ability to manage your own property. You have to apply in writing and also include:

• certificates from two doctors (at least one must be independent from you and your family), and
• a statutory declaration signed by you, stating that you’ve received advice from a lawyer about the application.

The trustee company’s role begins as soon as they accept the application and file it in the Family Court. They are now your property manager, with all the rights and powers that you’ve specified in your application.

Other people such as a relative or doctor can also apply if your property is worth less than $100,000 in total. Their application also has to include the two doctors’ certificates and a statutory declaration from you.

If you don’t want the trustee to control your property anymore, you can give them seven days’ written notice.