Client Stories
Recovering the Aged Care R.A.D. (Refundable Accommodation Deposit)
Jane’s mother had recently passed away and had been residing in a residential aged care facility. Jane (not her real name) was the executor of the Will and had all of the estate papers in order but the letter from the aged care facility gave her pause. It mentioned she would have to produce a grant of Probate of the Will in order to recover the Refundable Accommodation Deposit (RAD). What did Jane know about Probate? Not much... but thankfully she knew me!
Is it time to switch to a corporate trustee for your SMSF?
The benefits of a corporate trustee for your self managed super fund
Recently separated? Dignified Divorce might be for you.
Have you recently separated? Are you still on fairly amicable terms and talking about how to sensibly separate the assets? Want to preserve the equity without wastage on legal fees?
We can support the process with our 'Dignified Divorce' solution packages suited for parties that have come to an agreement about how to settle the property division.
Applies to married or de facto couples.
It’s beginning to look a lot like…
Even if you don’t have a will, you have an Estate Plan. Your magnanimous government has very generously give you one! But if you’re like most folks, you may prefer to have a say in how the kitty is divvied up rather than our “off the shelf” intestacy laws.
The joy of service
Recently a new client got in touch. We've known each other awhile but not been in touch of recent times. His father had recently passed away. He and his brother were Executors. They needed a grant of Probate to recover some funds from the CBA.
Sam decided to SUPER charge her estate plan!
How to Supercharge your estate plan with a Testamentary Trust
Bill and Jen protect their home from law suits
For many Australians, the lions share of their wealth is in the equity in their home which they hold as sole tenant or perhaps as a joint tenant with their partner or spouse. Should they get into hot water and cause someone loss or become involved in litigation, a successful claim against them could lead to a seize and sell order in order to satisfy the debt. If the house is worth $600,000 and the mortgage is sitting at $300,000, the equity in the property of $300,000 could then be applied to paying the debt. Bill and Jen found a way to protect their assets.
Grey nomad needs Probate
John and Marge (not their real names) had been looking forward to their retirement. The beaut new van was sitting in their driveway and John just could not wait to get her on the road. Marge’s father was fairly settled in the aged care village but she did feel that reluctance to leave , just in case he took a turn. Marge’s father encouraged them to go, ‘Don’t let me hold you back, you have to live every moment you get.” It was not easy balancing those two very important considerations for Marge and John.
Probate in the bush for the estate of a mate…
It’s not always easy to find a lawyer in the bush when it comes to dealing with the estate of a mate.
Clancy (not his real name) was a salt of the earth stockman. His good friend Banjo had decided to entrust him with taking care of his Will and appointed him as executor. He also received a generous gift under the Will. Banjo had a vision that Clancy would continue on in the tradition of running stock on country with this gift.
One of the things Clancy had to tackle was Probate of the Will. Now Clancy could wrangle a five hundred pound beast to the ground with his bare hands but when it came to paperwork, he reared up at the thought of it! Fortunately he was in good hands and we were able to help him get that side of things sorted.
Rani updates her Will to insulate her daughter’s inheritance from failed relationship
Rani recently got in touch with me to update her Will. A busy professional woman in her fifties with a daughter Sneha in her early twenties and on the cusp of those years that can be fraught with bust ups and bruised hearts. Not to mention property settlement litigation. Rani had heard about Testamentary Trusts and was interested in whether that could help secure the inheritance her daughter would receive. She got in touch to find out more.
Rebecca finds the simple way to deal with her late father’s estate
Rebecca’s father had recently passed away. Rebecca was the executor named in the Will and she had a copy of the Will. The estate consisted of her late father’s home and a small amount of cash held by Suncorp which needed to be divided between the beneficiaries, herself and two other siblings. She was a bit concerned that one of the other beneficiaries might contest the Will. Having met me a few months earlier, she got in touch to see if we could help.
Xi Lin’s husband passed away suddenly without a Will at 45
Xi Lin’s husband passed away unexpectedly at the age of 45 before he had made a Will. He had a heart attack whilst mowing the lawn. To make matters worse Xi Lin spoke very limited English as Mandarin was her native tongue. In the midst of her sorrow, there was a sea of paperwork to wade through and the funeral to arrange. Fortunately her late husband had a wonderful sister Beth who made an appointment for Xi Lin to see me. Beth wasn’t sure of what could or should be done legally but she knew that getting quality legal advice early would help.
Busy FIFO professional needs a Will
When you are working remotely, the time you spend at home is precious. You want to relax, perhaps do a spot of golf or gardening and be with you family, not running around taking care of administrative tasks. Max worked out of the Middle East and wife Grace ran the family home on the Gold Coast and took care of their three children. Getting his Will settled had been on his mind but just never taken priority. Max knew he needed to get something in place and when one of our newsletters arrived in his inbox with a Will reminder, he took a few moments to email me.
Who organises the funeral when there is no Will and the family can’t agree?
Dealing with the loss of a loved one can be hard but when there is no one person appointed to make funeral arrangements and other immediate decisions, the trauma can be magnified. Here we share how we helped a family get past this difficult stage.
Tracking down a Will…
When a loved one passes away, the first thing most people think of is to look for the Will if that is not already in order. Copies may be to hand but it is not always easy to locate the original. It may be in a safe custody box or with the Solicitor that drew the Will.
Kate’s mum had moved into an aged care accommodation in Ipswich a year or so before her passin. Kate was next-of-kin and the only child. She had only been able to find a copy of the Will amongst her mother’s papers. The other issue was that the aged care home held a refundable bond and would only release those funds to the executor of the Will and upon production of Probate of the Will. Probate of the Will is a process that requires an application to Supreme Court for examination of the Will. You can read more about Probate here. There were also some funds held by the Commonwealth Bank to redeem as well. Kate wasn’t sure how to proceed or whom to trust. Kate got in touch with me for advice.
Don’t get caught in the queue
This is the story of a personal acquaintance.
We were both members of a committee for about five years. B had mentioned to me of her parent’s passing in about June 2021 to which I did offer my services however she decided to stay with the law firm where her parents had made their wills. By March 2022 she emailed to say she was now regretting staying with her parents solicitor, as she was getting no updates.
The Will was an unsigned draft...
R’s husband sadly passed away recently. R began working with her financial advisor who set up the SMSF. They told her she would need to consult a solicitor independently regarding the SMSF claim and the deceased estate. Rhad no idea why they were two different things and everything was very confusing for her.