Wills are obviously an important part of Estate Planning; however to maximise wealth building, tax minimisation and family protection strategies, a proper Estate Planning review should also involve consideration and review of such matters as: (a) Life Estates and Asset Structures; (b) Superannuation structures and nominations; (c) The legal effect of how...
Separating parties who come to an agreement about how they will divide their assets post-separation often decide that they do not want to formally document their agreement and instead, have their ‘agreement’ documented in a statutory declaration signed by both parties in front of a witness. Presumably this is often done to save money, however...
A question which is often asked by parties who have separated is whether they can change the locks to the house to stop the other party having access to the property. This is an area not without its complexity as it will depend on numerous factors as to whether one party has the legal right...
There are no hard and fast rules regarding finalising a property settlement immediately after separation, however it is important to remember that the Family Law Act 1975 does impose time limits for the commencement of property settlement proceedings in the Family Law Court or Federal Circuit Court. These include a time limit of 12 months...
The Chief Justice of the Family Court (Federal Circuit Court) John Pascoe, has demanded greater access to information in respect of matters pertaining to family violence. The Chief Justice has highlighted that the Commonwealth/State Privacy legislation, and the lack of resources and funding being granted to the Family Court system is crippling judicial administration, to...
Generally, before a deceased person’s final wishes are able to be performed, a procedure known as a Grant of Probate of a Will is required. This is a sealed document that is issued by the Supreme Court Registry which affirms that the executor has proven that the Will is the last valid Will/Codicil of the...
It is trite to say that the advancement in I.T. technologies are rapidly growing and encompassing every aspect of our day to day life. Cloud based technology is becoming the norm in business operations, and is now often being used to disclose documents in litigious/adversarial matters through such tools as Dropbox. The recent Queensland Supreme...
Perhaps you’ve been left out of a Will, or you think that the Will of the deceased is unfair. In Queensland, the Succession Act 1981 (Qld) (‘The Act’), confers rights to specifically defined dependants, (see below) to bring a Family Provision Application. What is a Family Provision Application? A Family Provision Application is an application...
Major changes are set to begin later this year in respect of property transactions in Queensland. On 7 May 2014, the Queensland Parliament passed The Property Occupations Act 2014 (‘The Act’), which will replace current legislation, The Property Agents and Motor Dealers Act (commonly referred to as ‘PAMDA’). The new Act aims to achieve an...
Our firm has previously highlighted the importance of preparing a Will, however, there are some situations where a standard Will may not be the most effective way to distribute your estate. In matters that involve large estates, a number of beneficiaries, or where the beneficiaries are in risky occupations, testators should consider making a Testamentary...
