What happens when an original will is lost? Well – it depends. If the original will was last known to be in the possession of the testator, then it is presumed that the will was destroyed by the testator with the intention of revoking it. In simple words, that the […]
I have just been reading a relatively new case from the Supreme Court in Townsville where the court was called upon to make orders for funeral arrangements for a deceased person. One of the reasons that the court was called upon to make orders, was that the deceased did not […]
I have just been reading a relatively new case from the Supreme Court in Townsville where the court was called upon to make orders for funeral arrangements for a deceased person. One of the reasons that the court was called upon to make orders, was that the deceased did not […]
Recently, executors of a small deceased estate sought summary dismissal of a family provision application which appeared doomed to fail. The estate was small, and the competing claim of the sole beneficiary, who was the deceased’s widow, was strong. The executors were concerned that the costs of the litigation, which […]
It is commonly believed that the costs of estate disputes come out of the estate, but this is not always the case. Legal costs are complex, to say the least, but one thing for sure is that there are no guarantees that costs will be paid out of the estate. […]
Beneficiary rights in relation to deceased estates are limited primarily to what is known as the “due execution of the estate”. This means, basically, that a beneficiary has to stand back and let the legal representatives of the estate get on with its administration, before the distribution of a benefit. […]
Sometimes, there are few answers to the problems of blended family estate planning. Sometimes, the answers are not attractive, or easy. It is often difficult to discuss, too, because of the many sensitivities that arise. Faced with the reality, many people give up without even trying. This is unfortunate because […]
The answer is simple: If you are expecting that the solicitor who holds a will, must conduct a reading of the will to interested family members, the answer is “no”. Will readings are events that occur in movies or books, but not in real life. It may be that, back […]
Wait and see! That’s what many people do when they realise that they have been left out of a will. They think it is tacky or insensitive to ask for a copy of the will soon after the death, or to assert that a moral duty applied, such that provision […]
A recent judgment from the Supreme Court in Queensland confirmed that Succession Law Accredited Specialists have the necessary skills to assess testamentary capacity, that is, the mental ability to make a will. The test for testamentary capacity has ever been a legal test, notwithstanding that the evidence of suitably qualified […]
It’s an uncomfortable question, but a question that arises surprisingly often when there is dispute over funeral arrangements. The law says that no-one owns a body. This is a challenge when there are competing claims to the right to bury or cremate, or otherwise deal with a dead body. Having […]
A recent client was outraged that she was charged fees for the drafting of a simple will and power of attorney, on the basis that she could download “ten or more free wills” off the internet. This was after I gave her excellent advice about a range of factors specific […]
Deceased estate disputes can become very costly, very quickly. The law has developed a range of strategies to encourage litigants to resolve their disputes efficiently and affordably. Despite those strategies, intractable disputes can result in the blow out of legal expenses. The general rule that costs follow the event (that […]
Queensland is without a doubt the best State in Australia. We all know that. But did you know that Queensland is also the best for estate administration? We have great law in Queensland that means that many estates are able to be administered “informally”. Informally means without a grant of […]
One of the most commonly stated goals of will-makers is to ensure that their estate is administered simply and efficiently. Yet, some of the most bitterly disputed estates that I have seen over the last few years were disputed primarily because of the will-maker’s choice of executor of the will, […]
Here are some of the recurring themes from 2014: failure to plan for possible loss of decision-making capacity (or leaving planning until it’s too late); failure to plan for death (it will happen); failure to realise or to accept that estate planning can be very difficult, but that there can […]
This lush, zany and hilariously dramatic movie features the operation of various aspects of inheritance law: wills; codicils; conditional clauses; probate; and the role of the executor. The plot centres on the inheritance of Madame D’s fortune, after it is revealed early in the movie that a specific gift of […]
I recently presented a paper about Enduring Powers of Attorney at the Queensland Law Society Annual Symposium in Brisbane. The focus of the paper was remedying losses in deceased estates. The problem the paper was concerned with was where the beneficiary of a deceased person’s estate loses their benefit because […]