Dear CD,
The law that governs BFAs is the Family Law Act 1975 (or the Family Court Act 1997 if you are in a de facto in WA). This legislation does not cover testamentary intentions, and if included in a BFA, those intentions will not be enforceable.
A BFA is designed to document how the parties to the agreement intend to financially settle in the…Read More

Dear DD,
Family Provision Act claims
If a person dies and leaves out a person from their will (say spouse or child or other financially dependent person) then the excluded person may make a claim on the estate under the Family Provisions Act (State based legislation).

This is difficult to do and any claim is limited in the maximum amount that…Read More

Dear AB,
if you have a will and you name your minor children as beneficiaries, the assets will be distributed according to the terms of the will. However, because minors cannot legally own property or receive an absolute gift, the assets intended for them will typically be held in trust until they reach the age of majority or another specified age…Read More

Dear NJ,
The law that governs binding financial agreements if the Family Law Act 1975 or if you are in WA and in a de facto relationship, the Family Court Act 1997 (WA). Any testamentary declarations or clauses in a BFA are not enforceable under this legislation.

The appropriate way to achieve what you are requiring is to have both your wills re…Read More

Dear NJ,
The law that governs binding financial agreements if the Family Law Act 1975 or if you are in WA and in a de facto relationship, the Family Court Act 1997 (WA). Any testamentary declarations or clauses in a BFA are not enforceable under this legislation.

The appropriate way to achieve what you are requiring is to have both your wills re…Read More

Hi AS,
Yes, After you login, you can open the application file and then look for section for uploading additional documents. Scan the signed Affidavit of Plight, Condition and Finding (including an exhibited certified copy of the will) to PDF and upload it to the portal.
You can then wait to hear back from the Supreme Court.

MV

Dear As,

This type of requisition letter from the Supreme Court is standard. Even though they have the original will, they are asking the applicant(s) (who are the same persons as the “deponent(s)” and the “executors”) to provide more information about the will in the form of an Affidavit which is either done under oath or affirmed.

In your ca…Read More

Dear Customer,

1. If the signed and certified BFA is a binding separation agreement (we call them BSAs to help distinguish between financial agreements at the beginning of a relationship and a financial agreement used to document the terms of a financial settlement) then the clauses included allow for the transfer of real estate which is exempt…Read More

Hi Cassey.
If you have a will with only 1 signature by a witness, then the will does not meet the legal requirements to be a valid will. It is called an “informal will”.
If there is a valid will, then the process is to apply for probate of the will.
If there is an informal will, then the process is to apply for Letters of Administration with the…Read More

Hi Cassey,

The rules of intestacy for Victoria (Administration and Probate Act 1958) say that this is how an estate is to be distributed if there is no will:
A. If there are no children but a surviving spouse OR domestic partner, then the whole of the
estate will pass to the spouse or the domestic partner.

B. When there are no children but a…Read More

Hi GRT,

Sorry for the delay in responding.

This is not my area of experience, however, the tradie is required to be insured against any injury while on the job in your house. I sensible tradie would also be insured against property damage caused by them.

If the tradie refuses to repair, replace or pay for the damage, you have the right to make…Read More

Hi Sofeeya.

If one party changes their will without getting the written agreement of the other party, and the affected party passes away, then the children of the deceased party can challenge the will of the surviving party and make a civil claim against the surviving party for breach of contract and seek financial compensation through the…Read More

Hi Cassey.
If you have a will with only 1 signature by a witness, then the will does not meet the legal requirements to be a valid will. It is called an “informal will”.
If there is a valid will, then the process is to apply for probate of the will.
If there is an informal will, then the process is to apply for Letters of Administration with the…Read More

Hi Sofeeya,

Well no, it does not work as well as a binding will contract.
If you each had 50% and one party died, then that 50% would be transferred to the children of the deceased party. These children may not want to wait years until the survivor wanted to move out. This is pretty reasonable given the current economic climate. The children…Read More

Hi Sofeeya,

If I understand your enquiry, if you buy a house together in joint names as JOINT TENANTS, and one of you passes away, then the survivor receives the whole of the house. This is irrespective of what is in either person’s will as the survivorship rules means that he asset in questions does not form part of the estate and the will d…Read More

Hi Beverley.

In my experience from speaking to family law practitioners over the years, the most common challenges are:
1. Signing a BFA too close to the date of a wedding or date moving in together. The typical claim is that the effected person may have been pressured into signing the BFA. For example, the stronger financial party may hint that…Read More

Hi Vando.
I have seen the DIY wills that are sometimes shown at Post Office branches. The wills themselves are in a valid format.
The issue with DIY wills is that not everyone reads the instructions and signs the wills correctly. If no-one checks a will that is not signed properly, then if you pass away, then the will may not be accepted by the…Read More

Hi Sofeeya.

Yes, technically, the parties can make an application to the Court without legal advice and certification. The role of the Court is then to examine all the facts (which they do even if there are lawyer’s certificates) but they take a greater role. Unless the orders sought are within the Court’s tight tolerances, they will reject the…Read More

Hi Beverley.

The short answer is yes, binding financial agreements (“BFAs”) are enforceable in the Courts. There are certain legal pre-requisites which must be met for the Financial agreements to be binding and enforceable.
Firstly, for a BFA to be binding, each party must have firstly received independent legal advice from that party’s own l…Read More

Hi Vando.
All you can do is put in the numbers that you have from the nursing home and old bank statements.
The bank cannot give you more information for privacy reasons until you are made the Administrator of the estate at which time you become the legal personal representative of the estate. An estimate is usually very acceptable. If there are…Read More

Dear Vando,
I link to the Succession Act 2006 NSW is below:

In NSW the rules about how the estate is to be distributed can be found in Chapter4 Intestacy, but in short:
1. Spouse / domestic partner
2. Children or grandchildren of a deceased child
3. Parents
4. Brothers and sisters
5. Grandparents
6. Aunts and uncles
7. The State of NSW
You can…Read More

Dear Sofeeya,
The choice of which path you take (binding separation agreement or consent orders) depends on what you are aiming to achieve.
Consent orders is a process that requires the applicants who have already agreed to the terms of their separation, to file an application in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (“FCFCOA”). The…Read More

Hi Vando.
If you cannot find a will, then rather than make an application for probate you would make an application to the Supreme Court for Letters of Administration. It is a very similar process, but a little more complex. If there is no will then the intestacy laws (dying without a will) apply and those laws determine how the estate is to be…Read More