Advance Care Directives Act 2013

Subject to this Act, an advance care directive cannot make provisions of the following kinds:

a provision—

that is unlawful, or that would require an unlawful act to be performed;

that would, if given effect, cause a health practitioner or other person to contravene a professional standard or code of conduct (however described) applying to the health practitioner or person;

a provision that comprises a refusal of mandatory medical treatment;

any other provision of a kind declared by the regulations to be within the ambit of this section.

An advance care directive cannot constitute a request for voluntary assisted dying (however described), however nothing in this subsection prevents a person from expressing their preferences or wishes in relation to voluntary assisted dying in an advance care directive.

For the purposes of subsection (1), a reference to a professional standard or code of conduct does not include a reference to a standard or code of conduct prepared by or on behalf of a hospital, clinic, hospice, nursing home or any other place at which health care is provided to a person that regulates the provision of health care or other services at that place.

A provision of an advance care directive that contravenes subsection (1) is, to the extent of the contravention, void and of no effect.

In this section—

medical treatment ordered under a community treatment order or an inpatient treatment order under the Mental

medical treatment provided under section 56 of the Mental

any other medical treatment of a kind prescribed by regulations for the purposes of this definition.