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Is a Copy of an Advance Health Directive Legally Binding in Queensland?

Health
A hospital admissions folder labelled advance health directive resting beside a pen on an intake desk, in navy and gold tones.
A hospital admissions folder labelled advance health directive resting beside a pen on an intake desk, in navy and gold tones.

An advance health directive is meant to give you certainty that your medical wishes will be followed if you lose the capacity to speak for yourself. That certainty depends entirely on where the original document sits.

Why does the original matter so much?

Under Queensland’s Powers of Attorney Act 1998 (Qld), an advance health directive only carries legal weight in its original, properly executed form.1 Medical staff are not obliged to follow a copy, even a certified one. If only a copy exists and no original is on file, staff may choose to have regard to it, but they are not bound to, and you or someone acting for you could not pursue a claim against them for not following it.

Where is the original usually kept?

Lawyers typically lodge the signed original advance health directive with Queensland Health on the client’s instruction, where it becomes part of the person’s permanent medical record. If you cannot locate your original document, the first step is to contact Queensland Health directly to confirm whether one is already on file before assuming it is lost.

What should you do if you only have a copy?

Bring the copy to any medical treatment and explain that the original is on file with Queensland Health, if that is the case. If nothing is on file anywhere, speak to your lawyer about preparing and lodging a fresh original as soon as possible.

Confirm What’s Actually on File Do not assume your advance health directive is enforceable just because you hold a copy. Contact Queensland Health to confirm what is on record, and speak to our Wills and Estates team on (07) 5532 8777 if a fresh original needs to be lodged.

  1. Powers of Attorney Act 1998 (Qld) s 35 (Advance Health Directive: when effective); sch 2 pt 2 (definition of health care decisions). ↩︎

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