Category: Construction cases

Charitable Construction: Court considers philanthropic intentions in Will (Qld)

With the best of intentions, charitable giving in a Will can sometimes present challenges. In the case of Perpetual Trustee Company v The Corporation of the Synod of Diocese of Brisbane [2024] QSC 163, the Court was required to give guidance on how to interpret a charitable gift in the present day circumstances presented.

Murder & Lapse: Construction of gift-over in forfeiture case (Qld)

In the recent judgement of Savage v Savage [2023] QSC 280 handed down yesterday, the Court was sought to interpret the gift-over provision in a Will of a murdered father. By way of background, the deceased died on 17 July 2000, having been murdered by his daughter, who was later convicted of that crime. The…

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Embracing the Early Inheritance in family provision – on The Heir Waves

In the latest episode of my new podcast called The Heir Waves, Caite Brewer and I discussed some more interesting cases in succession law. Have a listen below: Embracing the Early Inheritance in family provision In this episode, Caite & Michele discuss: With increasing levels of inter-generational wealth transfer happening, this is an episode (and…

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Optional Extra: Court held exercise of Option to Purchase not done properly

Will making is sometimes pretty complex work. The plan will always be unique to a person’s wishes and the personal circumstances.  Every so often, I receive instructions from clients to include an ‘option’ for one of their family or friends to purchase their property. Usually, this is because they’re trying to balance at least two…

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“Probable intention”: Novel rectification case in ACT

Recently the Supreme Court in the ACT was called to determine a question of the interpretation of a Will and subsequent amendments made to the Will by the testator on the day he died. In the Estate of Rummer [2017] ACTSC 277, the Plaintiff called upon the Court to determine the true construction of the…

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Escaping the Nest: Abandoning a right to reside and FPA 15 years out of time

Recently, the NSW Supreme Court determined a slightly unusual coupling of issues; a construction matter as to a right to reside conditional upon payment of expenses alongside a family provision claim over 15 years out of time. The recent case of Estate of George Roby, deceased [2017] NSWSC 265 involved the estate of the late George Roby who passed…

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Worldy Wisdom: Why a pro forma will still ends up in Court

I’m always curious as to any judgement dealing with will kits or proforma wills.  I have every suspicion we will see more of these as the years go on. Recently the Court had to determine what a testator meant in the matter of Rhodes v Rhodes (as Executor of the Estate of Cecil Ronald Rhodes) & Ors…

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Rural farming and interpretation of “farming machinery” within a Will

As a regional lawyer living in a semi-rural area and with family in the farming industry (and as a succession nerd generally!), I thoroughly enjoyed reading this case. This case of Frey v Frey [2015] QDC 184 involved an issue of interpretation when the testator gifted “farming machinery” to a beneficiary. With multiple properties (gifted in various…

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“An amount equivalent to” a Retirement Village Exit Entitlement in a Will

With an ageing population and more testators residing in retirement villages with either freehold or leasehold interests at play, I found this case particularly interesting. The case of Suthers v Suthers [2015] QSC 285 involved a gift to the daughter of the testator of an amount of money equivalent to an amount received by the estate from the sale of the testator’s…

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