Szabo & Associates News & Updates

A Will is an important document. Without one, the reality is that intestacy rules will apply which state how your estate must be shared out on death. Nevertheless, it is also important to be clear which of your assets will not pass automatically through your Will so that, in tandem with the Will, you consider all your assets and those persons you wish to benefit.

According to a recent landmark decision in NSW’s Land and Environment Court, it was held that State’s environmental watchdog, the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), has a duty to take into consideration the protection of the environment from climate change. It was found by the Court that this duty is not currently being discharged adequately.

After the separation of a married or de-facto couple, a property settlement is an arrangement to divide their net assets between them. If the Family Court is required to determine the parties’ entitlements, it does so in a stepped process, including assessing the contributions, both financial and non-financial, of the parties to the relationship, the future needs of each party and whether the proposed division is ‘just and equitable’.

The validity of a Will can be, and is, frequently challenged. In order to do so, the challenger has to have the necessary ‘standing’ or legal entitlement. Broadly speaking, these are persons named in the Will, the beneficiaries, or anyone who would have inherited but has been excluded from doing so.

Under the Family Law Act, the only persons with rights are the children. No one with an interest in the welfare of a child has a legal right to spend time with a child. Rather, the focus of the Act is on the rights of children and parental responsibilities rather than on parental rights.