ANITA, a foreign citizen, has been living in Australia on a temporary visa and has been unsuccessful in obtaining a long-term visa. Anita meets an elderly Australian widower while volunteering at a neighbourhood community centre. Patrick is 85 years old and has lived alone since his wife died six years earlier. Anita initially visits regularly […]
MICHAEL has been suffering from chronic schizophrenia since the 1980s and his affairs are under the control of the Trustee and Guardian. When he passes away, his cousins stand to receive the whole of his estate, on the basis that they understand that Michael did not leave a will and that his estate would be […]
TERRY makes a will, leaving his large estate to his six children subject to some very unusual conditions. His first child only receives his inheritance if she is baptised. His second child only receives her inheritance if she abstains from alcohol consumption for twelve months. His third child only receives his inheritance if he obtains […]
ALAN makes a will, leaving the whole of his estate to his three daughters. However, shortly before he passes away, he makes a new will, leaving the whole of his estate to his neighbour, Henry. When Alan passes away, his daughters seek legal advice and soon commence proceedings. Henry says that he had formed a […]
RUTH never married and never had any children. When Ruth passes away, she leaves an estate worth $1.5 million. This includes a substantial superannuation fund, which was paid to her estate. Ruth’s last will appoints her only surviving sibling, Gary, as her executor, who also receives a 50% share of the estate, after the payment […]
KAREN is concerned that her elderly mother, Mary, is lacking the ability to manage her affairs. Karen makes an appointment with a solicitor, with a view to drafting a Power of Attorney and an Appointment of Enduring Guardian for Mary. Karen is present at the appointment with the solicitor and she does most of the […]
TRACEY died unexpectedly at 56, leaving no will. Her estate was substantial and was largely made up of investment properties she had acquired over many years. She had no children and her next of kin were her brother, Kieran, and her two sisters. Soon after Tracey’s death, Tina, a 48-year-old woman, asserted that she and […]
BARBARA and Wally have been in a de facto relationship for six years. There is one child of the relationship, their four-year-old daughter. When their relationship breaks down, Barbara and Wally seek legal advice and are able to negotiate consent orders, which resolve parenting issues in relation to their child. They are also able to […]
FOLLOWING a recent health scare, Peter opens the Notes application on his iPhone and creates a document entitled “last will”. The note appoints his brother William as his executor, gifts his house and contents to his brothers and after some monetary gifts to friends and family, gifts the balance of his bank accounts to William. […]
AFTER many years of delivering Christmas Cheer around the world, Santa decides it is time to get his legal affairs in order. He visits his long-time solicitor Ebenezer Scrooge, who dutifully prepares a Power of Attorney (‘POA’) appointing Santa’s son, Kringle Jr. The POA contains a specific power allowing Kringle Jr. to oversee “emergency operational […]
