All Hell let loose at the
Guardianship Board, they no longer had my husband in
their clutches! With the assistance of Mr Peter
McGivern, my husband’s company accountant, who
has worked for the Guardianship Board on many
occasions, 
( on his own admission ) they
called an Extraordinary hearing that
day, 27th March 1997 for 2:30p.m. I
was contacted and instructed by Margaret Watson to
make myself available by phone.
I was not privy to the entire hearing, only a
portion, during which a Mr John Hislop cross examined
me and reduced me to tears. The Hearing was about
protecting the business property before the hearing
proper one week later. I asked what he was expecting me
to do, surely he wasn’t expecting that I was
about to dispose of the property in a matter of a
week when 4 of those days were Good Friday to Easter
Monday. There was no need for the hearing in the
first place, my only interest was my husband and
keeping him out of a Sydney nursing home. He was
inferring that I would harm to my husband
financially? Common sense should have told them that
it would be impossible for me to have anything to do
with the premises as there was a partner to consider.
The premises could not be disposed of without her
authority. Common sense should have told him that if
I destroyed my husband financially I would be doing
the same to my future.
As it happened, he had no need to worry about me, the
Protective Office has done an incredible job of
ruining our finances all by themselves. Though they
would blame the debt I owed the Bank for it.
It was not until I received a copy of the Reasons for
Decision from that Extraordinary hearing (
after the 4th April hearing ) that I discovered that
Peter McGivern was the main instigator against me. He
“was concerned for Mr
Furner’s welfare”. WHERE WAS HIS
CONCERN WHEN HE LEFT MY HUSBAND TO FEND FOR HIMSELF
FOR 6 MONTHS from July 1996 to December 1996 knowing
full well that my husband was a danger
to himself. Where was his concern for the other
partner, Norma Furner? Did he advise her in July 1996
that the business was no longer operating? NO!
I met this man once, in December 1996 for about half
an hour ( he couldn’t even be on time for that
meeting) and that was only because I was concerned
about the business and what should be done about it
since my husband was no longer capable. He told me
to contact Norma Furner and advise her of the
predicament, regarding the business. He
didn’t think it was appropriate to contact me at
all regarding my husband’s health! I suspected
he had ulterior motives for his lack of common sense
and it seems I was right. His accusations bore
tremendous weight at both the 27th March and 4th
April hearings. Lies of course, but never once
questioned. Then he filed an enormous bill for the
work done re the closure of my husband’s
company.
I requested that the hearing due on 4th April 1997 be
withdrawn since my husband was back home in
Queensland and his business partner already had an
authority from my husband to sell the Redfern
property. This was refused, not in so many words,
just by the fact that my request was ignored and the
hearing proceeded anyway.
I was privy to the entire
hearing this time, by conference phone. However,
except for a final decision to appoint the Protective
Commissioner as Financial Controller over my
husband’s estate because of his ‘expertise’
and 'location', the finances were barely
discussed. Most of the hearing was discussing whether
or not those in attendance thought it
“O.K.” for my husband to remain in
Queensland with me!
These people at the hearing had never been involved
in the last 27 years our lives and I had never met
any of them except for Norma Furner, her daughter
Rhonda and Mr McGivern.
It was not until 24 hours after that
hearing that I received the Report,
presented to the hearing, by Margaret Watson, from
the Guardianship Board. It was dated 1st April 1997
and it appears that I was, according to information
they afforded me, entitled to be in possession of
that document PRIOR to the hearing, as was everyone
else present. Thus I was denied the opportunity to
question statements made and taken as
‘truth’ by the Board.
Guardianship was adjourned, they were sure they had
no jurisdiction since we lived in Queensland, however
they needed 6 months to think about it. Financial
control was given over to the Protective Commissioner
even though I was the only applicant. I
was never given the opportunity to prove whether or
not I was capable of handling and investing our own
funds.
This is not what I asked for, all I wanted was
medical attention for my husband.