- How Binding is Your Binding Death Benefit Nomination by Misko Vujnovic, Principal & Notary PublicA recent case considered by the Queensland Supreme Court Williams v Williams & Anor [2023] QSC 90 has highlighted the importance of taking all of the required steps to ensure a binding death benefit nomination is valid and capable of giving a legally binding direction to the trustee of a superannuation fund for the payment of death benefits … Read more
- Guardianship and Administration Orders by Evgenia Lega, Trainee SolicitorWhat is Guardianship and Administration? Guardianship or someone being appointed as an administrator applies in situations where an individual with a disability has limitations on their ability to make decisions for themselves, whether that be for their personal life, financial affairs, or their housing. They may need someone to make all those decisions, or perhaps … Read more
- Family Violence Intervention Orders by Evgenia Lega, Trainee SolicitorWhat is Family Violence? Family violence is defined in s5 of the Family Violence Protection Act 2008 (Vic) as being behaviour that is physically, psychologically, emotionally, economically abusive or otherwise threatening, coercive or dominating behaviour that causes a family member to feel fear for their safety or wellbeing, or for another (such as a child). … Read more
- What Are Parenting Orders? by Evgenia Lega, Trainee SolicitorSometimes, parenting disputes can lead to parenting orders to be made by the court, which are orders that outline the parenting arrangements for a child or children of a relationship or marriage. These orders will include information about who the child/ren will live with and where, whether one parent has sole parental responsibility, and who … Read more
- Questions to consider when preparing your estate planning by Kelly & Chapman LawyersWho you want to take care of your financial, personal, and medical affairs if you were to lose capacity by way of Enduring Powers of Attorney (financial and personal) and Medical Treatment Decision Makers? Who you want to be your executor and/or trustee? Do you need to consider incorporating a testamentary trust in your Will? … Read more
- What is a deceased estate? by Kelly & Chapman LawyersWhen a person dies leaving assets in Victoria, somebody, usually the executor of the deceased person’s Will, has to deal with the administration of the estate. Administering the estate means following the legal processes to distribute the estate as the Will-maker wanted. The person does not have authority to deal with the assets of the … Read more
- Testamentary capacity. What is it? by Kelly & Chapman LawyersTestamentary capacity is a gauge of the mental faculties of a testator when they create their will. A testator must be of competent mind, understanding, and memory in order to make a valid will. All testators are assumed to have testamentary capacity until it is proven that they do not. Whether or not a client has … Read more
- Powers of attorney made before 1 September 2015 by Kelly & Chapman LawyersThe Powers of Attorney Act 2014 commenced on 1 September 2015. Are the previous Powers of Attorney valid and how can the Principal revoke them? Enduring powers of attorney (financial) and enduring powers of guardianship properly made before this date are valid. Revocation of enduring power of attorney (financial) A person who made an enduring … Read more
- What is the effect of marriage and divorce on a Will? by Kelly & Chapman LawyersIt is often that that a marriage or a divorce automatically revokes a will. Is it so? Marriage Section 13 of the current Victorian Wills legislation deals with the effect of marriage on a will. Marriage revokes a will unless the will was made in contemplation of that particular marriage. The contemplation need not be … Read more
- What is a Reseal of Probate? by Kelly & Chapman LawyersA reseal is necessary as the personal representative appointed (executor or administrator) by a grant in a foreign jurisdiction cannot deal with assets in Victoria, although enquiries should first be made with asset holders as some, such as banks and share registries, may accept a grant from another jurisdiction together with satisfaction of other requirements. … Read more
- Binding Financial Agreement by Kelly & Chapman LawyersA Binding Financial Agreement is shortly called as BFA. As per the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) the agreement can be entered at any time of the relationship before, during and after. The agreement deals with all financial and property issues between the parties, including the claim for spousal maintenance. The agreement must be drafted according to … Read more
- COVID-19 early access to Superannuation and its impact on Family Law Property Settlements by Kelly & Chapman LawyersPursuant to the information on the Australia Taxation Office’s website, individuals who are financially affected by COVID-19 can access some of their superannuation early. Those individuals will not need to pay tax on any amount released to them and will not need to disclose it when lodging their tax returns. Eligible parties can apply to … Read more
- New Medical Powers of Attorney from 12 March 2018 by Kelly & Chapman LawyersThe Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 provides a framework for making decisions about medical treatment when people do not have capacity to make their own decisions. The Act is part of a broader shift towards empowering and supporting people to make their own treatment decisions. The Act does not authorise physician assisted dying … Read more
- Do you have a will? Do you know where it is? by Kelly & Chapman LawyersMany Australians are risking their wealth, considering somewhere between 25 and 40 per cent of people die intestate, without a Will in place. Part of that statistic is influenced also by a loss of documents. So not only is it important to have proper, strong, appropriate documents that fit your plan in place … but … Read more
- Capacity to make decision by Kelly & Chapman LawyersConcerns about capacity of a person to enter into legal transactions is not new, nor is the acceptance that capacity is issue-specific and that incapacity is not static and can change. The Law Institute of Victoria (LIV) will be launching its “ Revised Capacity Guidelines” as a guidance for lawyers to assess the client’s capacity … Read more
- Electronic Conveyancing by Kelly & Chapman LawyersWe are proud and very excited to confirm that Elizabeth Palumbo from Kelly and Chapman’s Property Department has now conducted the firm’s first electronic conveyancing settlement using the “PEXA” platform. PEXA represents a leap forward in conveyancing offering our business greater efficiency and our clients’ greater piece of mind that settlements will occur on a … Read more
- Trustees of a Family Trust by Kelly & Chapman LawyersThe position of a Trustee is an important position. The Trustee’s duties are covered between legislation in each state, commonwealth legislation and case law. Trustees can be individuals, one or more than one and also companies. Trustee’s Duties Trustees of family trusts have many duties. Many of these have been formulated by Judges through case … Read more
- Family/Discretionary Trust – Corporate Trustee versus Individual Trustee by Kelly & Chapman LawyersThe last 3 decades have seen a substantial growth in the number of people in Australia establishing a family/discretionary trust. The benefits of such an arrangement have been largely touted by professionals around 2 areas – asset protection and tax benefits. The issue of whether a corporate trustee is best suited as opposed to an … Read more
- 1 July new CGT withholding payments for real property sales of $2M or more by Kelly & Chapman LawyersKey points New requirements for contracts of sale of real estate worth $2M or more entered into from 1 July 2016. All purchasers of such real estate must withhold 10 percent of the purchase price unless they are given a clearance certificate by the vendor. Vendors of such property who are not foreign residents need … Read more
- Changes to the Power of Attorney Act 2014 by Kelly & Chapman LawyersA Powers of Attorney Amendment Bill 2016 has been introduced to parliament. The Bill proposes to make various changes to the principal Act, the most welcome of which is to clarify that multiple alternative attorneys can be appointed for one principal attorney or supportive attorney. Other notable changes include: removing the option to make a … Read more
- Good News for Transport Accident Victims by David DenbyIn 2013 the previous State Government legislated to limit the circumstances in which persons injured in transport accidents could sue for common law damages. The restrictions principally affected those suffering accident-related psychological injuries. The legal profession has been lobbying long and hard to have these changes revoked. It is pleasing to note that the Andrews … Read more
- Dependants and Death Benefits by Kelly & Chapman LawyersAn elderly self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) trustee was convinced that his adult son, who is not financially dependent on him, would receive all his superannuation savings upon his death totally tax-free. The trustee thought that because his adult son is classified as a “dependant” under the superannuation law, he would receive the benefit tax-free. He … Read more
- Powers of Attorney – New legislation by Kelly & Chapman LawyersThe Powers of Attorney Act 2014 (the Act) will commence on 1 September 2015. The purposes of the Act are to: clarify and consolidate Victoria’s enduring powers of attorney laws create the role of supportive attorney improve the protections against abuse of enduring powers of attorney. Powers of Attorney made under existing legislation will remain … Read more
- Superannuation Death Benefit Payment by Kelly & Chapman LawyersOn 23 June 2015 the Federal Court of Australia gave judgment in an appeal from a decision of the Superannuation Complaints Tribunal (“SCT”) to affirm the trustee’s determination to pay death benefits to the deceased’s adult children. The decision can be accessed here: http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/FCA/2015/612.html The deceased made no binding death benefit nomination and the legal … Read more
- The Federal Government recently announced substantial increases in fees by David DenbyThe Federal Government recently announced substantial increases in fees to be paid to both the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court in respect of family law cases. The legal profession through both the Law Council of Australia and the various state representative bodies (including the Law Institute of Victoria) has voiced opposition to the fee … Read more
- Who can draw up a Will? by Kelly & Chapman LawyersThere is no formal requirement that a lawyer must draw up the will, but if the will-maker is in doubt as to any proposed provision, either a solicitor, the State Trustees, or any private trustee company should be consulted as to the wording of the proposed will. A will is an important document as it … Read more
- When an executor does not wish to act by Kelly & Chapman LawyersThere is no obligation that you must accept the role of executorship, even if you had agreed with the will-maker that you would. If you don’t want to act when the time comes, and you have not meddled into estate property, you can give up the right to do so. To do this you renounce … Read more
- Two Types Of Co-Ownership by Kelly & Chapman LawyersThere are two ways of co-owning property – JOINT TENANTS AND TENANTS IN COMMON. The legal entitlements of these are different, with different outcomes for ownership interests on death. Co-ownership of property in these ways is not restricted to real estate, but can apply to other forms of property, such as joint bank accounts and … Read more
- Stopping (Ex) Employees from Stealing your Business by Misko Vujnovic, Principal & Notary PublicRestraint of trade clauses are now quite commonly used in employment contracts, but this wasn’t always the case. A covenant in restraint of trade, also sometimes referred to as a ‘non-compete’ clause, is a term in an employment contract that requires an employee, after leaving an employer, not to perform a particular type of work … Read more
- Resolving Property and Financial Matters at the end of a Relationship. by David DenbyGenerally speaking, there are 3 issues to discuss after a relationship breaks down irretrievably. 1. Divorce (if the parties are married). You cannot apply for a divorce until separated for at least 12 months. Separation can be under the same roof if not living as a couple. 2. Parenting. If there are dependant children (under … Read more
- Contracts – to read or not to read ! by Elizabeth PalumboWhen helping our client Purchasers, a review of the Contract of Sale and Vendor’s Statement (Section 32) by Kelly and Chapman before signing will give you an understanding of what it is that you will be signing if your are the winning bidder. Contract of Sale documents can be very complex by nature and should … Read more
- Important developments in the law of Family Provision by Misko Vujnovic, Principal & Notary PublicSignificant amendments to the provisions regarding persons eligible to make Family Provisions claims commenced on 1 January 2015. It applies to the estates of all persons dying on and from 1 January 2015. The categories of possible claimants are wider than in the previous regime but it also excludes a number of claimants previously included. … Read more
- Trading Names, Business Names, Company Names – Basics by Misko Vujnovic, Principal & Notary PublicA trading name was a name used by an entity or person to trade under, without it being registered as a business name. Trading names were collected prior to 28 May 2012 by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). They will be displayed on the Australian Business Register (ABR) until 31 October 2018. You are still … Read more
Kelly & Chapman Lawyers + Notary Public Incorporating the practices of - A K King & Rossi, L K MCGregor & CO, J K Edwards & CO
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I had the pleasure of dealing with Susan Gale-Phillips who I found to be outstanding. She is easy to communicate with, clear, concise, professional and great knowledge, available and or so quick to respond. Over the years in all my dealings with Lawyers for varied reasons this has definitely been the best experience.
Thank you so much Susan for making the purchase of my Property so effortless.
I will certainly use Susan Gale-Phillips at Kelly Chapman for all of my legal needs in the future.
Michelle Carracher
August 28, 2021 -
Dealt with Susan for a property purchase, she was very helpful and friendly throughout the whole process despite dealing with covid restrictions. Definitely recommend
Jim Ting
October 28, 2021 -
Excellent communication and attention to detail made our experience pleasant and efficient. I would definitely recommend Kelly and Chapman.
Barbie Steel
March 21, 2022 -
Outstanding service. Professional and prompt. Susan went above and beyond to ensure all legal requirements were fulfilled. Exceed our expectations.
Tobias Angstmann
October 28, 2021 -
Susan managed the sale of our home and purchase of our new property. She was extremely efficient and professional following up on issues promptly and even outside business hrs.
Would highly recommend.
Daniel T
April 19, 2022 -
Misko was a great help in guiding our large family through the processes of our mothers. . He displayed the knowledge we required and patience we needed, even dealing with my very basic zoom knowledge.
Mary Humphreys
May 17, 2022 -
We were very pleased to work with Susan-Gale Phillips when buying a property, who was exceptional from day 1. She always made herself available for queries, very clear in her communications and completed everything in a timely manner. She made the whole process seamless and pain free for us.
Susan is patient, friendly and very professional and I would highly recommend her top-notch service.
Regards
Swathi & Manish
S S
December 28, 2021 -
Personalized service that meets the clients needs. Going through a new property build and Susan has been a life saver and looked out for my best interests, thus easing my mind. Highly recommended.
Luke D’Anastasi
June 6, 2022 -
Throughout the process of buying and selling our homes, Susan at Kelly and Chapman provided amazing service with very responsive and rapid communication turnaround. Her planning and attention to detail left no stone unturned. She was alway available to help and in my opinion, went above and beyond to ensure success for us. Highly recommended.
Simon Bristow
February 28, 2022 -
Misko and Susan made a very difficult time much easier to manage and get through. Misko handled the will of a late friend seamlessly and Susan sold her property efficiently and covered off all of the annoying issues. I would recommend both to anyone managing probate and/or selling of a property. Thank you to both of you.
Kellie Rennie
April 19, 2022
