IN tragic circumstances, Wendy’s son, William, passes away. Aware that William did not have a Will, Wendy contacts a solicitor to commence the administration of her late son’s estate. Wendy believes that she is William’s “next of kin” on the basis that William was never married, was not in a de facto relationship when he […]

ALAN appoints his three children, Jim, Robert and Mary as his attorneys under a validly executed enduring power of attorney. Alan’s children are appointed “jointly and severally”, so that either one of them can use their power as Alan’s attorney without the consent of the others. Several years later, at 90 years of age, Alan […]

PETER Smith’s health had been failing over the past few months and after paramedics are called due to complications regarding his blood sugar levels, he composes a “Note” on his smartphone, entitled “Last Will of Peter Smith”. The document appoints his friend, Ben as his executor and leaves him the bulk of his estate. The […]

GLORIA, 101 years old, sold her house and the proceeds of sale were deposited into her granddaughter’s account. It is not clear how this occurred. Gloria was found to be under a legal incapacity and her “tutor” commenced action in the Supreme Court, seeking an order that the granddaughter “account” for the funds. The Court […]

PETER and Penny have a daughter, Diane and a son, Daniel. Peter and Penny purchase a home in which to live with Daniel. The property is registered in Daniel’s name. Later, Daniel moves-out and Peter and Penny continue to reside in the property. Peter and Penny enter into a Deed with Daniel to the effect […]

BETTY appoints two of her daughters as her enduring guardians. The documentation is executed by Betty in the presence of a solicitor who witnesses her signature and explains the effect of the document to Betty. Her daughters later sign acceptances of their roles as guardians and again their signatures are witnessed by a solicitor. The […]

GREG passes-away and leaves his $1 million estate to his only surviving son, Craig. Greg’s only other son, died several years ago, leaving four children of his own, one of them being Peter. When Peter discovers that his grandfather had not included him in his will, he seeks legal advice and makes a “family provision” […]

SCOTT, battling cancer, has a prognosis of just 12 months to live. Scott calls his sister, Mary, and asks her to come and live with him as his full-time carer. He tells her that if she does so, he will give her half of his estate when he passes-away. Mary tells Scott that she will […]

AS is common for many people at this time of year, Jack and Jill make a new year’s resolution to “get their house in order” in terms of their estate planning. They see a solicitor specialising in this field and are advised that the traditional estate planning package consists of three separate documents, being a […]