Abuse of EPoA (Financial)

Abuse of Enduring Powers of Attorney (Financial)

If a client informs you that their attorney has acted without their knowledge or consent and taken or used money for their own ends, the lawyer can do a number of things such as:

  • revoke the Enduring Power of Attorney (Financial) if the client still has capacity;
  • ask the attorney to account for all dealings undertaken as attorney;
  • apply to VCAT to suspend the Enduring Power of Attorney and audit the accounts (see section Applying to VCAT);
  • apply to VCAT to revoke the Enduring Power of Attorney if the client has lost capacity (see section Applying to VCAT );
  • apply to VCAT to order the Office of the Public Advocate to investigate if required;
  • seek to recover misappropriated funds and assets through VCAT;
  • make a complaint to the police with respect to any fraud that may have occurred.