$400.00 should get it done.
The person in question has been dead for 5 years...which is why I'm asking.
If you were a benefactor then you get a copy or viewing of the will.
OK, I already know all that.
What I’m asking is, can I approach the solicitor myself and ask for a copy, because I dont have one and the executor wont forward one to me.
OK, I already know all that. What I'm asking is, can I approach the solicitor myself and ask for a copy, because I dont have one and the executor wont forward one to me.If you're a beneficiary you're entitled to a copy of the will and you're also entitled to an account of how the estate has been administered, ie, what the assets are and how any money has been spent. Unless all you've been left is a specific item of property or sum of money and you've already received it.
OK, I already know all that. What I'm asking is, can I approach the solicitor myself and ask for a copy, because I dont have one and the executor wont forward one to me.
OK, I already know all that. What I'm asking is, can I approach the solicitor myself and ask for a copy, because I dont have one and the executor wont forward one to me.
Yep call the solicitor, they work for the Estate not the Executor. And if they will not give you a copy then call the Law Society.
OK, I already know all that. What I'm asking is, can I approach the solicitor myself and ask for a copy, because I dont have one and the executor wont forward one to me.Yep call the solicitor, they work for the Estate not the Executor. And if they will not give you a copy then call the Law Society.
Cheers 
I shall do just that
Pardon my naivety, but I can put a clause in my will specifically excluding my sister from receiving anything from my estate or making any claims against it?Edit: Perhaps I should rephrase so my question is clearer. I know I can put anything I like in my will, but will a clause prohibiting a blood relative from receiving any benefit or making any claim against my estate stand up in court if challenged?
it would be unusual for your sister to have any claim on your estate anyway, in Victoria it would now be downright impossible except in the most extraordinary of circumstances (like she thinks you are her mum/dad extraordinary).
Recent changes to succession law in victoria are designed to make it harder for spurious claims to get up and are designed to put more power back in the hands of the testator to write people out of their will if they want to. They doesn’t do much to protect people from elder abuse though.
Where there are bona fide concerns about the capacity of a testator making a will very late in their life or there are doubts about how they disposed of assets before they died you should definitely seek legal advice and more than one quote. There are plenty of lawyers out there that will gladly bleed a Estate for all it’s worth having such a fight.
Sorry to hear about your bad experience HM feel free to pm if you want a second opinion.