Wills and Estates

A Will is a legal document that clearly sets out your wishes for the distribution of your assets after your death. It enables you to control the management and distribution of your estate. Having a clear, legally valid and up-to-date Will is the best way to make sure that your assets are protected and distributed according to your wishes.

We have extensive experience in drafting wills and complex will for clients.

A Power of Attorney is an important part of life planning and allows another person to make financial decisions for you in circumstances you determine. Appointing an attorney gives your attorney the legal authority to look after your financial affairs on your behalf. It is something you can only do when you have mental capacity.

We have prepared numerous Powers for caring circumstances for clients.

An Enduring Guardian is someone you appoint to make lifestyle, health and medical decisions for you when you are not capable of doing this for yourself. Your Enduring Guardian may make decisions such as where you live, what services are provided to you at home and what medical treatment you receive. It is something you can only do when you have mental capacity.

We have extensive experience in drafting Enduring Guardians for clients.

Not all Attorney's or Guardian will do the right thing. It is important to understand that the fact that a person has been appointed pursuant to a Power of Attorney or Enduring Guardianship does not mean that they are free to do what they want. 

The NSW Civil and Administrative Appeals Tribunal has the power to supervise and review the excercise of power by an attorney or a guardian and where necessary to replace them.

We acted on behalf of three siblings in a dispute against a fourth sibling. One sibling had been appointed as the Attorney and Guardian of a parent. This sibling had then sought to sell the family home and relocate the parent to an aged care facility. We instituted proceedings in relation to the Power of Attorney and the Enduring Guardianship. There were very high levels of personal conflict between the siblings. The proceedings were contested and we were successful in obtaining orders for the NSW Trustee and Guardian manage the estate of the parent and that the Public Guardian be appointed as the guardian of the parent.

The clients comments:

“Family disputes are hard and we were really worried that what was being done by [our sibling} was just not in the best interest of [our parent]. We got very clear advice from the start and this allowed us to act quickly. Boyd-Boland Law did a great job in making the application and gathering the evidence required. The appointment of the NSW Trustee and Guardian meant that the best interests of [my parent] were looked after.”

AD

At times beneficiaries may be excluded or inadequately provided for in a Will, these types of situations are often called Family Provisions claims.

We acted on behalf of an adult child in a claim against an estate where the Will had only provided for one of seven children. The estate had a value of about 1 Million dollars. The matter involved Supreme Court of NSW Equity proceedings. There was a significant level of personal conflict between the parties. The proceedings were contested and it was not possible to resolve the matter at Mediation. Ultimately, we were successful in obtaining orders for the payment of a substantial sum to the client.

The clients comments

“Boyd-Boland Law did a great job in giving me good advice and preparing my case. I knew my brother would do everything he could to stop me getting anything. It was a hard fought case and I was really happy with the outcome. Thanks.”

PB

Not all estates will go smoothly, sometimes there will be disputes. We have extensive experience in estate litigation.

We acted on behalf of beneficiaries in an estate dispute against another beneficiary. The estate had a value in excess of three million dollars. The matter involved Supreme Court of NSW Equity proceedings involving two Wills executed in 2009 one providing the majority of the estate to one beneficiary and the other sharing the estate equally between all beneficiaries. There were issues about the execution of one Will including undue influence and duress. There were very high levels of personal conflict between the beneficiaries. We were able to resolve the proceedings reaching an agreement between the beneficiaries.

The clients comments

“This dispute had caused great division within our family. It was a complicated case and Boyd-Boland Law did a great job in investigating the facts and ensuring that we had all possible evidence available to us to assist us. They provided us with practical and reasonable advice, as a result we were able to resolve the matter limiting the legal costs involved. We got a really good outcome from a very difficult situation.”

PJ