Our client was a 50 year old man who came to Gerard Malouf and Partners wanting to contest his late mother’s Will as he felt that he had not been adequately provided for. The client’s mother passed away in the state of New South Wales and as a result the client had 12 months from the date of death to commence probate proceedings in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.
Our client was the middle child and spent the majority of his life dedicating his time to assisting his parents in major home renovations. The client was very enthusiastic and passionate about partaking in the renovations as he was proud of the family home and always maintained a love for construction and engineering. Our client also spent his entire life residing at the family home and provided care to his parents and consequently, he had developed a very strong and loving bond with both of his parents. The client was always under the impression that if his parents were to pass before him, that the family home would be left to him due to the assistance he provided to his parents and his involvement in the home.
Upon the passing of his late mother, our client was informed that he had only been provided with family provision of 8% of the deceased’s Estate, out of an estate worth approximately $4,000,000.00. The Estate mainly comprised of the family home. The only other two individuals named in the Will were the client’s two sisters. The client’s sisters had been gifted with a much larger portion of the Estate despite the fact that they contributed less towards the deceased during her lifetime.
Proceedings were commenced and a mediation was ordered in the matter. The client advised that the deceased had provided him with sums of money during her lifetime. Due to the payment of these monies, the Estate argued that the client owed them approximately $600,000.00. On this basis, the Estate did not want to offer our client any money, but rather wanted to have our client pay them the money they believed was owing to the Estate. During the course of the Mediation, we were able to successfully extinguish our client’s debt from the Estate and in conjunction with this have the Estate pay the client a 10% sum of the net sale proceeds of the family home.
Have you been left out of a loved ones Will? It is important that you get advice from an experienced solicitor that understands the complexities of such cases. Contact Gerard Malouf & Partners on 1800 004 878 or complete our email enquiry form for a free consultation with one of our experienced and specialised solicitors to discuss how we can assist you on a No Win No Fee basis.
