Executors Take Care

A recent decision made in the Courts of Victoria highlights the importance of comprehensive Estate Planning and the need for Executors to take particular care when they are dealing with an Estate in which they may have a conflict of interest.

In the case of Caruana and Ors v Caruana the son of the deceased was removed as the Executor of his Fathers Estate by the Court. And not only was he ordered to pay his own costs of the litigation. He was also ordered to pay the costs of the other parties to the litigation. This all arose because of a conflict about whether a sum of $300,000.00 which the deceased had loaned to his son during his lifetime should be repaid by the son to the Estate or not.

There are various ways in which this rather sad situation could have been avoided and illustrates very well the importance of obtaining professional legal advice when undertaking your Estate Plan, preparing your Will, and administering an Estate.

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