Choosing who you want to administer your Will once you have passed is an important decision. Whoever you choose will be responsible for managing your estate and all the assets and liabilities contained therein. The role of executor is that of a fiduciary (i.e. a position of trust), which means there...

As lawyers and Justices of the Peace, we are often asked to witness signatures on important documents such as Statutory Declarations.  As authorised witnesses, we must ensure that we comply with the witnessing requirements as set out in the Oaths Act for a number of reasons, otherwise we risk being ...

If a deceased person has not specified whether they would like to be buried or cremated (in their Will or otherwise), the legal right to make such a decision rests with the deceased’s next of kin.

The Supreme Court decision of Dragarski v Dunn [2019] NSWSC 300 dealt with a deceased who had died int...

CASE UPDATE: The Supreme Court of New South Wales has recently handed down a decision (Stone v Stone [2019] NSWSC 233) stressing the need for participants to Family Provision proceedings to make full and frank financial disclosure to the Court, and to the other parties. This means complete disclosur...

If you are appointed as someone’s attorney, pursuant to a Power of Attorney, you have the right (pursuant to section 38 of the Powers of Attorney Act 2003) to seek advice and directions from the Supreme Court regarding the exercise of any function.  Once that advice is received, then you cannot be h...

The term "Crisp order" refers to the principal established by the 1979 Supreme Court of New South Wales decision, Crisp v Burns Philp Trustee Company Ltd.  The principle relates to family provision cases, where a person who satisfies the definition of "eligible person" makes a claim against the esta...

CASE UPDATE

Last week, the New South Wales Supreme Court considered the issue whether the words "my children", when used in the context of the deceased's Will, included a child that the deceased adopted out shortly after he was born (see John Hamilton Condon v Simon Anthony Tonkinn [2018] NSWSC 449...

If you are the beneficiary of a Will it is important to know what your rights are in regards to obtaining and protecting your entitlement.

1. Right to Information

You have the right to be kept informed of factors concerning probate and distribution of your entitlement under the Will.  This does n...

The recent case of Ryan v Dalton highlights the role of testamentary capacity when making a will.  The case emphasised that there is a burden on the proponent of the will to demonstrate to the court that the last will created was made by a “free and capable” testator.

Background facts

Francis Jame...

An enduring power of attorney is a powerful document.

In the case of Szozda v Szozda [2010] NSWSC 804, the Supreme Court explained 2 fundamental questions that clients should ask themselves when making an enduring power of attorney:

"First, is it to my benefit and in my interests to allow another ...

On 10 August 2017, the Supreme Court yet again made an order in favour of an adult child who claimed for a larger share of their deceased parent's estate, under the family provision laws: Towson v Francis [2017] NSWSC 1034

The family

The person making the claim was one of 3 adult children whose mo...

It is not uncommon these days for couples to travel overseas to get married in an exotic location like Thailand or Hawaii or Bali (or even Las Vegas with an Elvis celebrant!), but care must be taken if a second ceremony takes place back home in Australia, mainly for the benefit of those loved ones w...