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Put Your Dispute In Our Hands
Get your FREE initial advice right now
In all estate matters Hentys Lawyers are prepared to act on a No Win No Fee basis
We assess your situation so you know the best approach to take.
We’ve dealt with hundreds of disputes, and over 95% have been settled out of Court
We assess your situation so you know the best approach to take.
We’ll keep you informed and involved at every step of your Will Dispute case
We assess your situation so you know the best approach to take.
Contesting a Will refers to the making of a ‘family provision claim’. It is an application to the Court to seek adequate provision from the Estate of a deceased person. I.e. you feel as if you have not been adequately provided for by the deceased, so you want to contest his or her wishes.
Pursuant to Section 50 of the Wills Act 1997 (Vic) the following persons are entitled to inspect a Will of the deceased (to enable you to then contest it)
…However, not every one of the aforementioned has the right to make a family provision claim against the deceased’s Estate (and therefore contest the Will)
Pursuant to Section 91 of the Administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic) in a nutshell only the following are eligible:
In making a family provision order, the Court considers
Also, in determining the amount of provision to be made by a family provision order, the Court considers:[1]
Pursuant to the Administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic) s 99 you have 6 months from the date of the grant of Probate or Administration to contest the Will.
However, after hearing from the parties affected the court may extend the time limit as it thinks necessary. Importantly, the applicant for extension cannot be made after the final distribution of the Estate, as no distribution of any part of the Estate made prior to the applicant can be disturbed by reason of the applicant or of any order made thereon.
The safest bet is just to contest before the 6 month period is up!
The best time to contest the Will is as soon as you have seen it and feel inadequately provided for. This is because Estate funds can sometimes be sold, transferred or spent and you may end up having no assets or funds to claim upon!
To do this, contact the team at Hentys Lawyers today and we can offer assistance. We will talk to you about your case and depending upon your wishes, immediately attempt to settle your claim before any court action is considered.
[1] Administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic) s 91(4)