When you get married, any Will you already have is (generally) automatically revoked. This seems like a pretty simply proposition. But here’s an interesting case which illustrates the problems that can arise. Husband and wife were married 40 years and divorced. They had a property settlement and went their separate ways. Wife made a new… Read More
Failing to formalise a property agreement properly can lead to very serious consequences. There are many examples in the case law of this happening. In one particular instance, a wife was ordered to pay her estranged husband about $25,000 more than seven years after the couple separated and reached an informal property settlement. Their situation… Read More
A common problem when parties separate is working out who gets to stay in the house until a final property settlement is resolved. There have been numerous Court decisions on this question over many years. The basic principle is that each of the parties have the right to continue to occupy the property, unless it… Read More
A common misconception that I frequently come across is that people believe that they need to get divorced prior to sorting out their property rights. Not only is this incorrect, but it can often be dangerous to delay sorting out your property entitlements whilst you wait for a divorce. “Divorce” is simply the act of… Read More
Many clients who come to see me about family law settlements are under the mistaken belief that the date that they separated from their partner is determinative of not only what assets are “included” in the asset pool, but also is determinative of when their respective contributions should be assessed. In fact, usually the asset… Read More