Legal costs for contesting a Will?

HoneyComb on 01/10/2015 - 18:19

I don't want to go into much detail Incase one of my people involved reads these forums and figure out who I am.

The Backstory is

  • Parents divorced
  • Parent got remarried to someone else.
  • Parent died.
  • The current spouse/widow has received everything including 2 properties + the super and everything else. I don't know what the total amount of assets received or how much money/super/life insurance the spouse received.
  • I got left out of the will. I got nothing.

I am upset at the events that has happened. I am not even sure if i am legally entitled to anything since the parent got re-Married and i know all assets legally/automatically go to their spouse.

I am thinking of contesting the will.

My Main concern is the cost of doing this.

Can anyone give me advice on the costs involved?

Has anyone here been through this before?

I want to pursue this but i am scared of the legal costs involved. I don't want to come out of this being $100,000 in debt. I am under 30 so having thousands and thousands of dollars of legal fees scare me.

Financial

Comments

  • [Deactivated] on 01/10/2015 - 19:10
    +2

    My condolences, OP. Do you have any siblings? Did they get a share of the inheritance?

  • Sawtell on 01/10/2015 - 19:17
    +6

    You should definitely make an appointment with a solicitor - You only have 12 months to make a family provision application.

    Usually the costs of contesting the will come out of the estate.

    As to whether you have any grounds it would depend on the relationship between you and your parent but I reckon you probably have.

  • Miss Dior on 01/10/2015 - 23:29
    +1

    Many lawyers offer a first appointment free of charge. Do some research and select the one you think is right for you. In NSW there is an organisation that provides one off over the phone advice free of charge, I think its called Law Access.

    This may be a starting point:
    http://www.lawaccess.nsw.gov.au/Pages/representing/after_som…

    The law society (I think that's the title these days) can refer you to 3 solicitors with expertise in your problem area.

  • altomic on 02/10/2015 - 01:05
    +3

    I note you are in NSW.

    You haven't explained the full details of your family situation so i have provided a general perspective.

    Under the Succession Act a person who meets the definition of "eligible person" can make a claim against an estate if the court is satisfied that the eligible person has not been adequately provided for in the will of the deceased person. The claim must be commenced within one year of death.

    You are an eligible person if you are the deceased's:

    (a) spouse or former spouse;

    (b) de facto partner, or

    (c) child (including an adopted child).

    You may also be an eligible person if:

    (a) you were at some time wholly or partly dependent on the deceased; or

    (b) you had a close personal relationship with the deceased.

    The law encourages parents to provide for their children. This is so despite the state of the relationship between parent and child (e.g. estrangement). A period of estrangement between a Will maker and their child is not necessarily enough on its own to negate the child’s right to contest the Will.

    Should this matter progress to court then the Judge will consider several things, such as:
    a) yours and the other parties personal circumstances/ongoing financial responsibilities for the foreseeable future
    b) the relationship which you had with the parent

    As for costs, sometimes it can be ordered that the application be paid from the estate.

  • HoneyComb on 02/10/2015 - 02:34

    thank you for replies. I was feeling confused about this situation. Feeling alot of anxiety when I started this topic and the replies have made me feel more confident. I will go ahead with seeing a solicitor.

  • TailsK on 03/10/2015 - 12:49

    OP, sorry that your parent passed away, but curiously, you didn't say if you were close to them or even a part of their life anymore.

  • f38r1 on 05/10/2015 - 19:44

    Contesting a will could be very very expensive (think above $40000 for a start). In the end, your lawyer will get most of your fortune, and both disputing parties get a little bit if anything left. If you feel sour about your step mother, this is definitely the way to take; She'll get nothing in the end (and your lawyer gets rich). Good luck with that.

  • robbyjones on 05/10/2015 - 19:53

    I don't know a lot however unless you were financially dependent on your parent, or you are a minor and they are obligated to provide for you, you may spend a lot of money with little result. What has happened to you sucks, big time, however before you spend any money why don't you spend some time researching on the web or a law library somewhere. Another suggestion may be to talk to your parents surviving partner, perhaps they feel the same way but don't want to address it for whatever reason. Good luck.

  • chumlee on 05/10/2015 - 20:18
    +1

    Spend a few hundred $ on a consultation with a lawyer and see what his/her opinion is. Most times a valid challenge to a will comes out of the estate.

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