Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 18 March 2017. Matthew and Mary divorced 20 years ago after a brief relationship that resulted in the birth of their only child, Lisa. After separation, Matthew paid Mary child-support and paid all of Lisa’s school fees. By way of a judgement in the Family Court, Mary received approximately 40% of the matrimonial assets. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 11 March 2017. Margaret and George moved into a nursing home in 2014. George sadly passed away in 2015 and later that year Margaret is diagnosed as suffering from dementia. Apparently due to “sibling conflict” between her children, the Public Guardian is appointed to make decisions regarding Margaret’s accommodation needs, her health and medical care. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 4 March 2017. Gary passes away leaving a will that appoints his friend Raymond as his executor. Gary’s will leaves the whole of his estate equally to his three children. Gary’s estate consists solely of a house valued at $500,000. For Raymond to sell the house and distribute the proceeds to Gary’s children, it is necessary for him to obtain a grant of probate. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 25 February 2017. Cynthia and Robert have been married for ten years and have two children who are nine and seven years of age. Unfortunately, their marriage breaks down and Cynthia and Robert separate. Cynthia has the major care of the children after separation and is only able to work part-time, earning a much lower income than Robert. Cynthia and Robert own a home with a mortgage. They each also have superannuation entitlements, small savings and a car. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 18 February 2017. Michael, aged 57, unfortunately has an accident when visiting his friend, Robert on the weekend. It was raining on the day and the injury occured when Michael was walking up the outside stairs onto Robert’s verandah. Unfortunately, Robert had spilt some oil on the stairs and was going to clean it up the day before the accident but did not get around to doing so. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 4 February 2017. Margaret’s hotel, A Cardinal’s Inn, is open from 5am until midnight, to accommodate guests who often arrive late and leave early. She employs four staff, including Simon, who manages the Inn at night. Simon has worked at the Inn for five years and has been working the night shift for approximately 12 months. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 28 January 2017. Greg and Jane are in their 60s and have no children. Jane is British and Greg is an Australian citizen. They reside in Australia and have done for many years. They make Wills leaving their estate to each other and when they both pass away, their Wills provide for an equal split between each side of their respective families. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 21 January 2017. Cecil, a 56-year-old farmer, tells his wife Bessie that he is taking his tractor to do some work about 2 km from the homestead and that he will be back by sunset. Unfortunately, Cecil is involved in an accident whereby the tractor rolls over and his leg is pinned beneath the left rear wheel. Bessie goes looking for Cecil and finds him under the tractor. She runs to the nearest farmhouse and they drive to town to find help. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 14 January 2017. Karen is unfortunately involved in a car accident and passes away in her mid-30s. Karen did not have a will. She was single and did not have any children. She was living with her mother at the time of her death. Although Karen’s estate was relatively small, her superannuation death benefit, which included life insurance, totalled $800,000. […]
Hypotheticals by Manny Wood. Published in the Coffs Coast Advocate on 24 December 2016. Anne had two children, Nicole and Karen. Anne dies at the age of 85, leaving just one asset, being the family home worth $800,000. Karen lived with her mother for her entire life. She has never moved out of home and never lived with anyone else. Karen contributed to the household expenses and paid nominal board. […]