Aleta Gooley & Anor v Brett Gooley [2021] NSWSC 56

Aleta Gooley & Anor v Brett Gooley [2021] NSWSC 56

The deceased lacked testamentary capacity from at least the time of his stroke (between July and September 2012) and continuously thereafter, due to severe executive dysfunction and vascular dementia, such that he could not weigh the respective claims of beneficiaries or comprehend the nature and extent of his estate. The presumption of capacity for all subsequent wills was displaced and not met. The 1 February 2010 will is the last valid will.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
12 February 2021
Procedural Posture
Contested Probate / Principal Judgment (final)
Outcome
Plaintiffs' claim dismissed. Grant of Probate of the 1 February 2010 will to the defendant.
Legal Topics
['testamentary Capacity' 'contested Probate' 'wills' 'banks V Goodfellow Test' 'suspicious Circumstances' 'dementia and Mental Capacity' 'grant of Probate']
['succession Law' 'equity'] ['testamentary Capacity' 'contested Probate' 'wills' 'banks V Goodfellow Test' 'suspicious Circumstances' 'dementia and Mental Capacity' 'grant of Probate']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Contested Probate / Principal Judgment (final)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether the deceased had testamentary capacity at the time the disputed wills were made' 'Whether suspicious circumstances surrounded the making of the later wills' 'Which will was the last valid will of the deceased']

Ratio Decidendi

The deceased lacked testamentary capacity from at least the time of his stroke (between July and September 2012) and continuously thereafter, due to severe executive dysfunction and vascular dementia, such that he could not weigh the respective claims of beneficiaries or comprehend the nature and extent of his estate. The presumption of capacity for all subsequent wills was displaced and not met. The 1 February 2010 will is the last valid will.

Court Disposition

Plaintiffs' claim dismissed. Grant of Probate of the 1 February 2010 will to the defendant.

Orders

  • ['Grant of probate in respect of the 1 February 2010 will to Brett Raymond Gooley' "Dismissal of the plaintiffs' summons and relief sought for probate of later wills" 'Parties to bring in short minutes of order reflecting these reasons; costs reserved']