This article discusses whether a power of attorney committee nomination is valid under Queensland law, including how a general power of attorney can be limited in scope and used for body corporate committee appointments.
Question: Which Power of Attorney is appropriate when nominating for a vacant committee position? Can the General Power of Attorney form be used to nominate for the Committee as this is not a financial matter?
The BCCM Act does not define which Power of Attorney is appropriate when nominating for a vacant committee position.
The General Power of Attorney form states “Use this form if you want someone to act as your attorney for financial matters while you have the capacity”.
Can the General Power of Attorney form be used to nominate for the Committee as this is not a financial matter?
If the form can be used can it solely relate to Committee nomination and exclude financial matters?
Answer: Yes – the general power of attorney form can be used for nominating for a vacant committee position.
Yes – the general power of attorney form can be used for nominating for a vacant committee position.
Sections 8, 9 and 11 of the Powers of Attorney Act 1998 (Qld) relevantly provide that:
By a general power of attorney made under this Act, a person (principal) may…provide terms or information about exercising the power.
A principal may specify in a power of attorney a time when, circumstance in which, or occasion on which, the power is exercisable.
A general power of attorney made under this Act must be in the approved form.
Note— An approved form is a form approved by the chief executive under section 161—schedule 3 (Dictionary). Strict compliance with the form is not necessary and substantial compliance is sufficient—Acts Interpretation Act 1954, section 48A (Compliance with forms).
Accordingly, the general power of attorney form can be used for committee nominations and can limit the scope of powers of the attorney or otherwise exclude particular items. It should be noted though that a financial matter is broadly defined to include items such as a legal matter relating to the principal’s financial or property matters which may extend to acting as a committee member representative.
This post appears in Strata News #606.
Todd Garsden Mahoneys E: tgarsden@mahoneys.com.au P: 07 3007 3753