We spent a day this week at the Supreme Court of NSW securing an excellent settlement for three clients in relation to the contents of a deceased person’s Will.
For legal reasons we cannot name our clients, but here is the case study:
- The deceased person died leaving four natural children and a defacto spouse. Three of his children were from his first marriage and were aged between 40 and 50 years. These three children were our clients.
- The fourth child was the child of the deceased and his defacto spouse.
- Under his Will, the deceased left his whole Estate to his defacto spouse, completely disinheriting his children.
- We acted on behalf of three of his children to obtain a share of the Estate for them on the basis that the Will was not a fair distribution of the deceased’s Estate.
- The fourth child also made a claim against the Estate, as well as two other plaintiffs who were dependent on the deceased during their lives.
- All up, there were six plaintiffs all seeking a share from the Estate, and the defacto of the deceased person, who was also named as his Executor.
- We were able to obtain approximately 25% of the Estate for our clients on the basis that the deceased should have left a share of his Estate to the children of his first marriage, not just his second wife.
- Settlements were also reached in relation to the other three plaintiffs to ensure that legal costs did not get out of control, and that the beneficiaries of the Estate received their share without having to spend it all on lawyers.
If you have been completely left out of a Will, or if you have been included in a Will but do not believe that you have received your fair share, you may be entitled to more. Unfortunately, sometimes when people write their Wills they may be affected by illness, an emotional situation such as a family dispute, or could be influenced by other people which results in an unfair distribution of their estate.
There is no shame in seeking some advice about what you may or may not be entitled to. For an obligation free consultation please contact us today on (02) 4704 9991.
