Inheritance Disputes, Intestacies & Mistakes

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Inheritance disputes often arise where a will is poorly drafted and either fails in whole or part resulting in intestacy or partial intestacy.  In other words it is death which affects the transmission of property whether by will or partly by will or where there is no will.  Irrespective whether there is a whole or partial intestacy the distribution of the estate is governed by statutory rules covering the intestate distribution.  Although this scheme of arrangement is designed to assist relatives, that are potential beneficiaries of the deceased, it may run counter to their true intentions.  Basically the law identifies the order of preference starting with the deceased's family which are most closely related to them.  The problem may be if the deceased's true intentions were to be given effect there may be some relatives who would be excluded for particular reasons.  There are many cases where people die childless and have no rapport with their parents, siblings, nephews and nieces, grandparents, uncles and aunts and cousins.  Essentially an artificial statutory order has been set up to facilitate the administration and distribution of the estate designed to cover all situations but it does this imperfectly in many cases.  Why would anyone wish to have their property distributed to family with whom they have nothing in common and perhaps don't particularly like?  It is not uncommon to find in families that some members may be estranged or do not get on or have lost contact with the deceased yet here they are about to receive a windfall which they never had in their contemplation given their particular circumstances.  Apart from this hardship may result from the application of the rules of intestacy leading to claims under the Family Provision Legislation.

Wills which are drafted by persons other than lawyers are often unclear which means that the executor or a party interested in the estate may have to apply to the court to determine what were the deceased's true intentions.  Sometimes wills drafted by the uninitiated may contain mistakes and while some can be rectified, others cannot.  When this occurs the will may fail as there may be an intestacy which will totally circumvent what the deceased's true intentions were, as persons will be introduced as beneficiaries who were never in their reasonable contemplation of being so when the deceased was alive.  All questions involving interpretation of a will are dealt with by the equity division of the Supreme Court of NSW which is an extremely expensive way of having one's affairs dealt with after death because the law is either unclear or uncertain on any number of matters which could have been properly addressed had an accomplished lawyer been engaged to attend to them during the life of the deceased.

No one should die intestate and everyone over the age of 18 should make a will.  Nationally, approximately 10% of all persons above the age of 18 do not have a will and in some states the percentage is much higher.  Everyone should have a will because everyone needs to have a say in the way in which their estate is distributed rather than relying on a fallback legislative scheme which may produce a result which is neither fair nor reasonable.  Essentially the aim of the legislation is adequate distribution amongst a set class of individuals, which is imperfect, as it does not take into account individual circumstances.  The cost to draft a will is a small investment in the future which produces the desired outcome required by the maker at little personal expense or inconvenience.  No lawyer will ever get rich drafting wills so avail yourself of this opportunity.

Costs

Normally solicitors bill their clients as the matter progresses.  With some wills/inheritance disputes we are prepared to wait until the end of the matter before submitting our bill.  In these cases our costs are usually paid out of the estate on settlement.

Wills disputes can become complex due to the classes of would be beneficiaries involved and the position they adopt.  One of the best ways to control the costs of contesting a will is to negotiate them wherever possible to avoid both the heavy costs of litigation and any untimely delays associated with administering an estate.

We do not accept instructions in matters where the client's claim does not exceed of $100,000.  Whether you be executor/executrix or a disappointed beneficiary and are concerned about a claim(s) made against an estate which you are administering or you have been overlooked by the deceased who has not made any or adequate provision for you please call LAC Lawyers to discuss.  In some cases you may wish to discuss with us whether you qualify for our contingency fee arrangements.

 

Contact us now for Fast, Accurate and Timely legal advice

Phone LAC Lawyers on NSW 1300 799 888 or VIC 1300 734 638 or send us an email