Byline: Rachael Grabovic

For most of us, a new year brings new beginnings and opportunities. With the holiday season now behind us, this is the perfect time to create or update your estate planning including your Will before you get caught up in the daily routine of another year.

On 20 June 2024, the Victorian Government announced the Department of Justice and Community Safety (the department) would lead a review of fees charged for services provided by the Victorian Probate Office within the Supreme Court.

As part of its review, the department sought community feedback in which Rigby Cooke Lawyers’ Wills, Trusts & Estates group provided a submission expressing its concerns on the proposed fee structures and increase in probate fees.

A discretionary trust, more commonly known as a ‘Family Trust’ is a common investment vehicle used by families and family business owners around Australia to hold assets or to run their family business.

During the COVID lockdown last year, the Victorian Government passed emergency legislation to deal with the execution of many legal documents, including Wills and Powers of Attorney. The legislation legalised the electronic signing and witnessing of such documents.

The case of Kennedy v Proctor [2021 VSC 521] concerns a dispute as to whether a horse known as ‘Ishker’ was loaned or gifted by Ms Kennedy to Ms Proctor. It was a decision appealed from the Magistrates’ Court to the Court of Appeal.

If one of your loved ones appears to have reduced mental clarity and is planning to make significant decisions regarding changes to their Will, or is considering signing legal documents such as Enduring Powers of Attorney, how should you proceed?

If your family trust receives franked dividends or has tax losses, the trustee should consider the option of making a family trust election (FTE) in order to access certain tax concessions.

Victoria’s family provision legislation was substantially amended by the introduction of the Justice Legislation Amendment (Succession and Surrogacy) Act 2014.

In Australia, we have what is known as ‘freedom of testation’. That is, a person is free to leave their assets to whomever they wish when they die.

Court of Appeal Superannuation Case

Managing your own self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) brings with it estate planning issues. In addition to contemplating who will be entitled to receive your superannuation death benefit on your death, you must also consider who will take control of your fund if you were to lose capacity or die.

As we reflect on 2020, it highlights how unexpected life can be and how so much can be out of our control. Last year, due to bushfires in the early part of the year and COVID-19 we saw unprecedented financial, economic, and human loss across not only Australia but the world.

As we reflect on 2020, we will no doubt remember how unexpected life can be and how much is out of our control. However, there is one aspect of our lives we can control, and that is our estate planning. As we start 2021 with anticipation and possibly some trepidation, there is no better time than now to take control of your succession plan.

In the fourth of our Wills and Estates 101 series, we speak with Rigby Cooke Lawyers Wills and Estates Special Counsel, Christian Teese, to answer questions around your rights to challenge the validity of a Will.

In the third of our Wills and Estates 101 series we speak with Rigby Cooke Lawyers Wills, Trusts and Estates practice lead, Rachael Grabovic, to answer questions around Superannuation death benefits.

In the second of our Wills and Estates 101 series we speak with Marcus Schivo, a lawyer in our Wills, Trusts and Estates team, to answer common questions around Probate and what you need to do.

In the first of our introductory series which looks into the world of Wills, Trusts and Estates, we speak to Rosa Bazzanella a Senior Associate at Rigby Cooke Lawyers about some of the questions she frequently encounters in her work.

Recently we discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the forefront the importance of having a Will and Powers of Attorney in place. It has also highlighted the challenges of arranging and executing these documents whilst in lockdown.

Court of Appeal Superannuation Case

Managing your own self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) brings with it estate planning issues. In addition to contemplating who will be entitled to receive your superannuation death benefit on your death you must also consider who will take control of your fund if you were to lose capacity or die.