We were contacted by the son of his late mother in these proceedings initially to provide some preliminary advice on how to contest a Will in NSW utilising the first free consultation on an obligation free basis.
On this occasion we learned that he was a biological child of the deceased who was left out of the estate due to various factors that affected his relationship with his late mother. These factors included but were not limited to, his sexual orientation and financial circumstances.
After providing the son with initial advice on how contest the Will of the deceased, he provided our office with instructions to act on his behalf and to put the Estate on notice of his intention to make a claim for provision out of the deceased’s Estate.
The estate was put on notice of our client’s intention to make a claim and relevant documents were sought from the estate immediately. It was evidenced upon receipt of the deceased’s last Will and Testament as well as the Probate documents that our client did have a good case. In preparing the claim Gerard Malouf and Partners representative attended the client’s home in Newcastle, at which point in time, detailed affidavit evidence was obtained in order to progress the case.
It was explained to our client that generally speaking, in matters of this nature, the parties will either resolve the claim prior to litigation or will be forced to commence formal proceedings by way of a Summons in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.
Gerard Malouf and Partners advised our client, that when contesting a Will it is always appropriate to try and minimise costs and to negotiate with the Defendants prior to commencing formal proceedings by way of a Summons in order to see whether or not a resolution can be achieved.
The fact that our lawyer had allocated all relevant documents in anticipation for filing proceedings in the Supreme Court made it easier to negotiate with the Defendant’s solicitors. This was primarily due to the fact that we were able to serve the Defendant with the evidence that we intended to rely upon for the purposes of the Family Provisions claim and it allowed them to appropriately advise their client as to the potential value of the Plaintiff’s claim generally.
Taking all of the above into consideration our client provided us with instructions to convey a number of offers of settlement with a view of attempting to bring about a full and final resolution of the claim.
After extensive settlement negotiations that took place between the legal representatives of both the Plaintiff and the Defendant, the parties were able to reach a compromise and settle the case.
Our client was extremely satisfied knowing that the matter had resolved and was not required to appear in Court or even incur further unnecessary legal fees in circumstances where settlement could be achieved.
This is a perfect example of where aggressive litigation may not necessarily be the best option for a client and for that reason the expert lawyers at Gerard Malouf and Partners will weigh up the strategic strengths of the various steps that could be taken in a Family Provisions claim and will ensure to advise you as to what best step to take when contesting a Will.
If you have any questions or you have a similar scenario and you would like to utilise our first obligation free consultation please do not hesitate to contact Gerard Malouf and Partners. We would be more than pleased to provide you with advice with respect to how to contest a Will.
Another good example of an extremely happy client.
