The fight you never expected to be in.

Under Part IV of the Administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic), family members who have been unfairly left out or left without adequate provision have a legal right to seek support. But the structural threshold is exacting, and the clock starts ticking the moment probate is granted.

We walk beside clients on both sides of these deeply personal disputes:

• For Executors & Defendants: We build an ironclad defence against opportunistic claims, protecting your loved one's true wishes from being dismantled by those without a legitimate entitlement.

• For Claimants & Beneficiaries: We look past complex corporate curtains and trust layers to uncover the true value of the estate, ensuring your rightful place in the family legacy is recognised.

A will signed under heavy pressure, or by someone facing significant cognitive decline who didn't fully understand what they were signing, is heartbreaking. It can - and should - be set aside.

For a will to be legally binding, the person making it must possess the clear mental capacity required by law. The historical common law standard established in The Rule in Banks v Goodfellow guides how courts assess this capacity. Where there are valid reasons to believe this standard wasn’t met, we step in to uncover the truth.

• Deep Evidentiary Reviews: We gently gather and forensically analyse medical records, legal files, and contemporaneous notes to reconstruct a clear picture of your loved one's mindset at the time of signing.

• Exposing Undue Influence and Fraud: If someone took unfair advantage of a vulnerable family member through pressure or deception, we help you bring those actions to light. Conversely, if a groundless challenge is launched out of spite, we move quickly to dismantle it.

In estate disputes, timing isn’t just important - it is everything. Once a grant of probate is issued, assets can be rapidly sold, transferred, or distributed, making them exponentially harder to recover.

If you have serious concerns about the validity of a will or the suitability of an executor, waiting to see what happens is a dangerous risk.

The Reality: Hope is a beautiful thing, but it isn't a legal strategy.

To protect the people you love and keep the peace, we design Multi-Layered Capital Ring-Fencing frameworks:

• Freezing the Status Quo: We act immediately by filing an urgent probate caveat in the Supreme Court of Victoria. This simple document stops the administration of the estate in its tracks, protecting the assets while we secure the facts.

• Preserving Trust & Company Assets: Where assets inside family trusts or private companies are actively mismanaged, we seek urgent interlocutory injunctions from the court to freeze funds and hold everything steady until a final decision is reached.

Not every estate conflict takes place inside a will. For high-value families, the most significant assets often sit completely outside the estate - held within discretionary family trusts, unit trusts, or Self-Managed Superannuation Funds (SMSFs).

• Equitable Rights and Fiduciary Protection: If an executor or trustee is hiding accounts, mismanaging property, or quietly looking after their own interests instead of the beneficiaries, they aren't just letting you down - they are breaking the law.

• Court-Ordered Executor Removal: We initiate decisive removal applications in the Supreme Court of Victoria to have untrustworthy executors or trustees replaced with independent, professional administrators who will treat you fairly and transparently.