Wills and estates

• The legal wife, the de facto wife and the deceased estate – which case won?

  10th Aug 2023

  What happens after a man who led a double life dies? The deceased’s will assigned all of his property, worth $230,812, to his de facto wife. His legal wife took action and his de facto wife appealed. Elizabeth Hull of Stacks Law Firm provides expert commentary on the Court of Appeal's ultimate decision. 

• Can you put conditions in a will? Laws around conditional gifts and bequests in NSW

  8th Jun 2022

  How capricious can a testator be? What if the conditions in their will are uncertain, difficult to achieve or in conflict with public policy? And when can a beneficiary take the money and run? Joshua Crowther answers some curly questions around conditional gifts and bequests, with reference to precedent decisions by judges on cases concerning religious freedom and racial discrimination.

• Should voluntary assisted dying be legalised in NSW?

  8th Jul 2021

  In NSW, the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill failed to pass the upper house in 2017. Alongside reignited discussion around legislation on this controversial topic, Joshua Crowther provides an overview of the current position of voluntary assisted dying in NSW, documenting end of life care in a will, and advanced care directives.

• Dispute over fate of deceased’s body determined by consulting Facebook

  28th Jan 2021

  Joshua Crowther discusses the importance of having an up-to-date will. He refers to the case of Dragarski v Dunn [2019] NSWSC 300 where, in the absence of a will, the judge looked to the deceased person’s social media accounts to decide on precedence among her relatives and the fate of her body.

• NSW notional estate provisions – helpful for some victims of financial elder abuse

  30th May 2019

  Danielle Little advocates for Queensland and other Australian states to follow New South Wales in allowing family provision applications in wills and estate matters.

• What is testamentary capacity? A basic guide.

  29th Nov 2018

  Some of the details and circumstances that must be considered to determine if a will-maker has/had the capacity to make his/her will.