Why the Polish Community in Melbourne Needs a Polish-Speaking Lawyer

Melbourne is home to one of the largest Polish communities in Australia. With over 52,000 people of Polish ancestry living in Melbourne alone, and a statewide figure of more than 62,500 across Victoria, the Polish community here is well established, deeply rooted, and growing in complexity when it comes to legal needs.

Yet despite this, finding a lawyer who speaks Polish, understands the Polish legal system, and can act as a Notary Public for Polish documents is remarkably difficult. In Victoria, there are only two such practitioners. Professional Edge Lawyers, based in Frankston, is one of them.

This post explains why a Polish-speaking lawyer matters, what legal issues arise most often for the Polish community in Melbourne, and why professional legal help in your own language can make a significant difference.

The Polish Community in Melbourne and Victoria

According to the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census, 13,052 people born in Poland live in Greater Melbourne, with 14,202 across Victoria as a whole. The median age of Poland-born Victorians is 64 years, compared to 38 for Victoria generally, meaning this is a predominantly ageing community with pressing legal needs around estate planning, powers of attorney, and aged care.

Nearly half (47.8%) of Poland-born Victorians are aged 65 or older. Many arrived during the major migration waves of the 1980s (38.1% arrived between 1981 and 1990), meaning they have lived in Australia for decades but may still have significant ties to Poland: property, family, inheritance, and personal affairs that straddle two legal systems.

The community is concentrated in Melbourne’s south-east, particularly Glen Eira (which records 6,226 people with Polish ancestry) and the City of Casey (2,949), which adjoins Frankston, where Professional Edge Lawyers is located.

Despite many years in Australia, a significant proportion of the community continues to use Polish at home, and around 9.6% of Poland-born Victorians speak English “not well or not at all.” Even for those with strong English, navigating complex legal processes in a second language is stressful and carries real risk of misunderstanding.

The Legal Issues That Matter Most

Property Transactions Across Two Countries

Many Polish Australians own or inherit property in Poland, or are involved in transactions where parties are located in Poland. Buying and selling property in Poland when you live in Australia requires carefully prepared documentation, including powers of attorney (pełnomocnictwo) that comply with Polish legal formalities.

In Poland, a power of attorney authorising someone to act in a real estate transaction must be in notarial deed form. A standard signed document is not sufficient. This means you need a Notary Public in Australia to prepare the instrument correctly, which must then be apostilled by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) before it will be recognised in Poland.

Having a Polish-speaking Notary Public draft the document significantly reduces the risk of errors that could delay or invalidate a property transaction.

Wills and Estate Planning Across Jurisdictions

For Australians with assets or beneficiaries in Poland, standard Australian estate planning may not be enough. A will valid in Victoria may not automatically be recognised in Poland without proper steps, and the distribution of a Polish estate (spadek) involves Polish succession law, which differs from Australian law in important ways.

Structuring your estate plans carefully, and potentially preparing complementary documentation for each jurisdiction, is essential. A Polish-speaking lawyer can advise on both Australian obligations and the practical realities of the Polish system, and can coordinate with Polish lawyers where needed.

Powers of Attorney for Use in Poland

One of the most common situations the Polish community faces is an elderly parent in Poland who can no longer manage their own affairs. If you need to act on their behalf (managing property, dealing with banks, or handling government matters) you may need a Polish power of attorney (pełnomocnictwo) to be recognised in Australia, or an Australian power of attorney to be recognised in Poland.

The reverse is equally common: an Australian-based Polish Australian may need a trusted person in Poland to act on their behalf for a property sale or estate matter. This requires a properly notarised and apostilled document, prepared with precision.

Probate Involving Polish Assets or Beneficiaries

When someone dies with assets or beneficiaries in both Australia and Poland, the estate administration process becomes more complex. Polish beneficiaries may need to receive distributions from an Australian estate, or vice versa. Certified documents, translations, and compliance with both countries’ requirements are all part of this process.

In Victoria, the administration of a deceased estate is governed by the Administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic). Where Polish assets or Polish beneficiaries are involved, additional steps are required to ensure the estate is handled correctly in both jurisdictions.

Family Law Where One Party Is in Poland

Family law proceedings involving a party who lives in Poland present unique challenges, including service of documents, international enforcement of orders, and jurisdictional questions. Cross-border family matters require careful navigation, and communicating clearly with all parties, in their own language, is often essential to resolving disputes efficiently.

Why Language and Cultural Understanding Matter

Legal concepts do not always translate neatly between languages. The word “power of attorney” in English covers a broad range of instruments, but in Polish law the term pełnomocnictwo encompasses very specific formal requirements depending on what it authorises. Misunderstanding the scope or form required can mean a document prepared in Australia is rejected in Poland, causing significant delays and expense.

Beyond terminology, cultural context matters. Polish clients often have a deep sense of personal privacy around financial matters, a different relationship with institutional authority, and communication preferences that differ from the Australian mainstream. A lawyer who understands these nuances, not just the language, can provide more effective and more comfortable service.

For elderly clients in particular, being able to explain legal processes clearly in Polish, answer questions in Polish, and ensure informed consent is genuinely informed is not a luxury. It is a professional and ethical necessity.

The Role of a Notary Public for Polish Documents

A Notary Public is a specially commissioned lawyer who authenticates documents for use in foreign countries. In Australia, Notary Public services are separate from general legal practice, and not all lawyers are notaries.

For Polish documents, a Notary Public in Australia typically prepares or authenticates powers of attorney (pełnomocnictwo) for use in Poland, certifies copies of Australian documents (passports, birth certificates, title documents) for recognition in Poland, witnesses statutory declarations and oaths for use in Polish legal proceedings, and prepares affidavits and statutory declarations in bilingual form where required.

After notarisation, documents intended for use in Poland must be apostilled by DFAT. An apostille is a standardised international certificate that confirms the notary’s authority. DFAT is the only body in Australia authorised to issue apostilles. The Polish Embassy or consulate cannot do this.

The Hague Apostille Convention

Both Australia and Poland are parties to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents (commonly known as the Hague Apostille Convention). Poland acceded to the Convention on 14 August 2005.

What this means in practice: Australian documents apostilled by DFAT will be recognised in Poland without further legalisation, Polish documents apostilled by the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be recognised in Australia, and the apostille process replaces the older, more burdensome chain of legalisation through embassies and consulates.

For the Polish Australian community, this is a practical and efficient framework, but only if the underlying documents are prepared correctly in the first place. An improperly notarised document cannot be saved by an apostille.

Practical Examples

Consider a few situations that arise regularly for the Polish community in Melbourne:

An elderly parent in Kraków can no longer manage their affairs. Their son, a Melbourne resident, needs to sell the family property on their behalf. He needs a power of attorney in notarial deed form, notarised in Australia by a Notary Public with Polish language capability, then apostilled by DFAT and sent to Poland for registration.

A woman living in Dandenong inherits her late uncle’s apartment in Warsaw. She needs to navigate the Polish spadek (succession) process, obtain certified copies of Australian documents, and coordinate with a Polish court, all while managing an Australian estate simultaneously.

A Polish couple recently arrived in Melbourne want to purchase property in Victoria. One partner’s family is still in Poland and they want a Polish-language power of attorney so a family member can manage Polish affairs while they settle here. They need the document drafted correctly, notarised, and apostilled before it leaves Australia.

In each of these cases, having a Polish-speaking lawyer who is also a Notary Public, and who understands both systems, eliminates an entire layer of complexity.

Bilingual Legal Services in Melbourne

Professional Edge Lawyers offers bilingual legal services in English and Polish. Principal solicitor Radek Dajer is one of only two Polish-speaking lawyers and Notary Public practitioners in Victoria, with experience in estate planning, powers of attorney, property transactions, and cross-border legal matters affecting the Polish community.

Whether you need a pełnomocnictwo prepared for use in Poland, advice on your will with Polish assets or beneficiaries, or general legal assistance in Polish, our Frankston office is here to help.

Call us on 1800 776 529 or visit prolawyers.com.au to make an enquiry. We serve clients across Melbourne and Victoria.