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  • Is the Will Forged?

    14 DECEMBER 2022 , ESTATE DISPUTES , CONTESTING A WILL , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , PROBATE & DECEASED ESTATES

    In a recent case, a husband and a wife had been married for nearly thirty years with four children. The husband owned a panel beating business and a range of commercial interests including the operation of tow trucks and considerable property holdings, all of which made him wealthy. The man died. His will left the entire $22 million estate to one of his sons. Nothing was left to his wife or other children. The beneficiary son obtained probate. Read more

  • Do You Have Assets Overseas? Beware of the Cost of Not Having a Will!

    28 JUNE 2022 , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , ESTATE DISPUTES , PROBATE & DECEASED ESTATES

    In a recent case, a man died in Australia. He left behind a wife and two children, and an estate valued at over $50,000,000.00. He had assets in Australia, Hong Kong and China. He had not made a will to specify how his assets were to be divided after his death. Read more

  • Can a Child, Unborn When the Parent Dies, Still Inherit?

    16 NOVEMBER 2021 , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , ESTATE DISPUTES , PROBATE & DECEASED ESTATES

    In a recent case a husband and wife were trying to have children by IVF. Five embryos were produced. One of the embryos was successfully implanted and the wife gave birth to a child. The remaining four embryos were frozen. Read more

  • Will Your Executor Be Able to Find Your Assets?

    22 SEPTEMBER 2021 , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , ESTATE DISPUTES , PROBATE & DECEASED ESTATES

    As our lives increasingly move to “online digital platforms”, it is becoming more important to help your executor access your “digital assets” after you die. Digital assets include social media accounts, shopping accounts, bank or investment account details, entertainment collections, gambling accounts, and the like. Read more

  • Life Insurance Denied Due to Failure to Disclose!

    19 JANUARY 2021 , LITIGATION & DISPUTE RESOLUTION , PROBATE & DECEASED ESTATES , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING

    In 2014 a man took out life insurance. He named his de facto partner as the beneficiary of the policy. In his application he had claimed to be a healthy individual who did not take drugs, and who lead a healthy lifestyle. The policy was for $2,625,000.00. Read more

  • When a Secret Lover Appears after Death, What Can They Claim?

    08 DECEMBER 2020 , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , CONTESTING A WILL , ESTATE DISPUTES , PROBATE & DECEASED ESTATES

    In 2018 a man died without a will. He had three children. He had separated from his wife eight years prior to his death. Despite separating, the two were not divorced. Not long after the man’s death, his family was shocked to find that their father had a secret lover who they had never met or heard of. She made a claim on their father’s estate. Read more

  • Is Your Discretionary Trust Ready?

    01 DECEMBER 2020 , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , PROPERTY LAW & CONVEYANCING

    If you have a discretionary trust that holds (or may one day hold) real estate, then you need to be aware of a recent change in the law. Read more

  • Choose the Executor of Your Will Wisely! By David Gordon

    Choose the Executor of Your Will Wisely!

    01 SEPTEMBER 2020 , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , ESTATE DISPUTES

    In a recent case a father had two sons and no other family. The father made a will naming the older son as his executor. The will said that the estate was to be divided equally between the two sons. Read more

  • Have You Considered What Happens to Your Digital Assets after You Die? By Julia Yang

    Have You Considered What Happens to Your Digital Assets after You Die?

    25 AUGUST 2020 , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , PROBATE & DECEASED ESTATES

    As digital assets continue to rise in popularity, the amount of people holding digital assets and dying without either telling others of the assets, or not providing enough information in order to access the assets, is dramatically on the rise Read more

  • Will Making Capacity is Not Black and White! By David Gordon

    Will Making Capacity is Not Black and White!

    04 AUGUST 2020 , CONTESTING A WILL , WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING , PROBATE & DECEASED ESTATES , ESTATE DISPUTES

    A father had six daughters. He made a will dividing his estate equally between the six of them. In 2013 he changed his will to give $40,000.00 to each of five of the daughters, and the rest of his $3,000,000.00 estate to his remaining daughter. Read more