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Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 5 May 2023. Mary passes-away after a three-year bout with cancer. She leaves two adult children, David and Julie. Julie lived with Mary for 15 years prior to her death. Mary’s will gifts her four-bedroom home to Julie and only makes nominal provision for David. There is a mortgage on Mary’s home, with $300,000 owing. Mary also made a binding death benefit nomination in relation to her superannuation, with the effect that Julie receives 90% and David receives 10% of the death benefit. Julie uses her share of the super to pay $200,000 [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 28 April 2023. David decides to update his will. He nominates his four children, Levi, Kate, Charlie, and Billy as executors. However, his solicitor advises David to consider reducing the number of executors as the children are interstate and overseas, which may make it difficult to administer the estate. David follows the solicitor's advice and chooses his daughter Kate as the sole executor with Billy as the substitute. Over Christmas dinner, David informs his children of his decision regarding his will. His choice of executors creates tension and hostility in the family. As a result, [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 21 April 2023. Cheryl contacts a local solicitor and arranges an urgent hospital visit so that her father, Bill, can make a Will. Bill is suffering from terminal cancer and is in palliative care. When the solicitor arrives at the hospital, he meets with Bill alone and is satisfied Bill has the mental capacity to make a new Will. Bill explains to the solicitor that he only has two daughters, Cheryl and Jan and that he wants Cheryl to “have the lot” because he hasn’t spoken to Jan for 20 years. The solicitor [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 14 April 2023. Matthew and Mary each have a child to a previous relationship. Matthew’s daughter, Helen spends most of her childhood living with her mother but lives with Matthew and Mary between the ages of 16 and 18 years, before moving out. The relationship between Mary and Helen remains amicable until Matthew is admitted into a nursing home decades later. When Matthew passes away, he leaves the whole of his estate to Mary. When Mary passes away 10 years later, leaving a one million-dollar estate, her will gives the whole of the [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 7 April 2023. Jack and Jill each have two children to previous relationships. They have been married for 10 years and are concerned about their estate planning. Their primary concern is that they want to make proper provision for each other but they also wish to ensure that their respective childrens’ inheritance is protected. They seek specialist advice. The solicitor explains that if they make “simple” wills, leaving their whole estate to each other, with all four children receiving a share of the survivor’s estate, that there is a risk that the survivor [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 31 March 2023. Peter is looking for a premises to operate his business and finds an appropriate industrial shed. He asks his mother, Mary if she could help him purchase the freehold. He explains that if he is registered on title as an owner, that he will then be able to secure an overdraft to support his business. Mary pays the whole of the $400,000 purchase price and they are both registered on title as “tenants in common” with a 50% share each. Unfortunately, Peter’s business fails a couple of years later and [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 24 March 2023. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a branch of computer science that focuses on the development of intelligent machines that can perform tasks that typically require human intelligence, such as speech recognition, decision-making and language translation. In recent years, AI technology has rapidly advanced, and it is now being used across various fields, including education, marketing, healthcare, law and finance. AI powered legal research has become a tool for clients to further understand their legal issues and potentially draft legal documents, including documents associated with estate planning. However, providing instructions to draft [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 17 March 2023. Emily suffers from a severe disability, affecting her cognitive abilities and preventing her from making a will. Emily’s condition also means that she will likely have a  reduced life expectancy. Emily receives a substantial inheritance from her uncle, on her mother’s side. Emily’s mother has been her sole carer since birth and has dealt with the challenges arising from her disability. Emily has had no contact with her father, nor his side of the family. Emily’s mother is concerned about what will happen to Emily’s inheritance, if she passes-away without [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 10 March 2023. Mary has two children in their late 40s. Her children encourage her to update her will. Mary consults a solicitor who specialises in wills and estates. The solicitor reviews her existing will and explains that in light of her current financial circumstances, a “simple” will is no longer appropriate. Given that each of her children stand to receive an inheritance of around $1 million, the solicitor recommends a “testamentary trust” will (TT Will) as a more effective vehicle for them to receive their inheritance. Rather than each child receiving $1 [...]

Article by Manny Wood published in the Coffs Coast News Of The Area on 3 March 2023. David, 70 years of age, has three daughters. He makes a will, leaving one of his daughters Penny, just $100 and leaves the rest of his estate to his other two daughters equally. David’s will sets-out the reasons why Penny receives only nominal provision. It states that David had assisted Penny in renovating her house, funded an overseas trip and that she had recently engaged in threatening behaviour, which led to an AVO being made against her. When David passes-away 10 years later, leaving an estate worth $500,000, Penny commences [...]