---
title: "Client consent and authority to obtain information from a third party (Centrelink, a bank, a landlord or an agency)"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/precedents/legal-aid-and-community-legal-practice/client-authority-to-obtain-information"
type: "precedent"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "a54-client-authority-to-obtain-information"
area_id: "A54"
kind: "form"
ai_level: "yellow"
version: 1
task_ids: ["A54-B5-21"]
law_stated_as_at: "2026-10-18"
---

# Client consent and authority to obtain information from a third party (Centrelink, a bank, a landlord or an agency)

> Signed authority letting a legal service request and receive a client's information from a named organisation for a stated purpose and period, with withdrawal rights and safety instructions, plus notes on when the…

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/precedents/legal-aid-and-community-legal-practice/client-authority-to-obtain-information  
Law stated as at: 2026-10-18

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

Signed authority letting a legal service request and receive a client's information from a named organisation for a stated purpose and period, with withdrawal rights and safety instructions, plus notes on when the organisation's own form is needed.

## Key facts

- Kind: Form. A form to complete, or a guide to completing an official one.
- Practice area: [Legal Aid & Community Legal Practice](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/legal-aid-and-community-legal-practice.md)
- Jurisdictions: Australia
- AI level: Yellow. AI can help in set ways. A lawyer checks specific points before use.
- Law stated as at: 2026-10-18
- Status: Maintained. Checked on 2026-10-18 against the 3 authorities it cites, for Australia.

## When to use it

Use when the service needs records the client cannot easily get, for example income and debt records for a legal aid means test, bank statements for a financial abuse matter, or a rental ledger for a tribunal claim. Check first whether the organisation insists on its own form, as Centrelink does for nominee arrangements.

## Used for these tasks

- [Triage a legal aid eligibility and means-test application](https://ailawframework.com/practice/legal-aid-and-community-legal-practice/triage-a-legal-aid-eligibility-and-means-test-application.md)

## How AI may be used

AI may fill the authority from the intake record and draft the covering request; the lawyer confirms the client understood and agreed to each organisation and type of information listed.

**AI may:**

- Fill the client details, organisation details and the information requested from the intake record
- Draft the short covering letter to the organisation quoting the authority
- List which organisations named are likely to require their own form, for the lawyer to check

**AI must not:**

- Must not widen the information requested or the period beyond what the client agreed to
- Must not include the client's residential address or contact details where the client has asked for them to be withheld
- Must not send the authority to any organisation the client did not name

**The lawyer checks:**

- The client was told in plain language, with an interpreter if needed, what will be requested, from whom, why and for how long, and that they can withdraw
- The client has capacity to give the authority, and no one else was present who might have pressured them
- Each organisation's own requirements are met (for Centrelink, the SS313 form or an online nominee arrangement)
- The expiry date is recorded and the authority is not used after it

## Authorities

- [OAIC, Australian Privacy Principles guidelines, Chapter 6: APP 6 use or disclosure of personal information, paras 6.16 and 6.17 (disclosure with consent; consent must be informed, voluntary, current and specific, and given with capacity)](https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/australian-privacy-principles/australian-privacy-principles-guidelines/chapter-6-app-6-use-or-disclosure-of-personal-information)
- [Services Australia, Authorising a person or organisation to enquire or act on your behalf form (SS313)](https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/ss313)
- [Legal Profession Uniform Law Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules 2015 r 9.2.1 (disclosure of confidential information with the client's express or implied authority)](https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/sl-2015-0244)

## Full text and drafting notes

The full text and the drafting notes are not part of this public page. Signed-in firm accounts can read them at https://ailawframework.com/precedents/legal-aid-and-community-legal-practice/client-authority-to-obtain-information and through the signed-in MCP connector https://ailawframework.com/mcp/firm.

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*