Nicholas Kyriakoudes For many writing a will is a confronting task. Thinking about death and planning how you will support your family after you die is a challenging thought. However, making a will is necessary for this purpose and should not be overlooked. While many people wish that the whole of their estate gets given [...]
The law specifies certain legal requirements for a document to be regarded as a person’s valid Will. Principally, these requirements are that: the person making the Will (Testator) signs the document at the foot and preferably at the foot of each page; in the presence of two witnesses who also sign the document and who [...]
If you think that you cannot end up in court if you have done nothing wrong – think again. Recently, a client of ours who has held a firearms licence for about 40 years and had never been in any sort of trouble, had his licence revoked and his guns taken by the police [...]
When can I apply? An application for citizenship can be made by any Australian permanent resident who has lived in Australia lawfully for a period of at least 4 years including at least one year as a permanent resident. The applicant must also have physically lived in Australia for 3 of the 4 years [...]
When someone passes away, it is quite common for family members and/or other interested parties to ask about obtaining a copy or attending the “reading of the will” (if there is one).It is also quite common for people to be told that they are not entitled to view the will or have a copy of [...]
An Advance Care Directive (ACD), sometimes called an Advance Health Care Directive, is a document that sets out your wishes in relation to your consent to or refusal of specified medical treatment in the future. The document becomes effective in situations where you are no longer able to make decisions for yourself and is [...]
Recent case law had demonstrated that the size of the Estate doesn’t always mean that an Applicant in a family provisions claim will be successful in attempting to get more than the legacy left under the Will. In Revell v Revell [2016] NSWSC 947, His Honour Pembroke J found that a legacy of $1.5 million to [...]
Hansons Lawyers are pleased to announce the acquisition of well established Wollongong law firm, Atkins Jones. Atkins Jones and its predecessors have been a locally owned and operated law firm proudly servicing the Illawarra for over 50 years. Atkins Jones have been providing expert legal advice to their clients in a number of areas [...]
With a Hansons Lawyers testamentary trust the trustee (controller) of each testamentary trust you create is also the primary beneficiary of their own trust. That person (your spouse, child or other nominated beneficiary) becomes ineligible to be the trustee and have control of their own trust if they have problems with debt or are in [...]
There is no legal obligation for a company to have a shareholders agreement. Because it’s not a legal obligation many people either put off having one drafted or do not fully understand the benefits of having one in place from the start of a venture. DO WE NEED A SHAREHOLDERS AGREEMENT? Preparing the shareholders [...]
