Testamentary Capacity

There is new legislation which now allows people without testamentary capacity, to have wills authorised by the courts. Before we discuss this new legislation, it is important to establish what testamentary capacity is. There was a case heard in 1870, that all these years on, still provides authority for the criteria for establishing testamentary capacity.…

Wills: First Statutory Wills Case

In a previous article “Testamentary Capacity” we discussed the test for establishing testamentary capacity, that is, the ability to provide instructions for a valid will. The Supreme Court of NSW recently utilized in two separate and unrelated cases, for the first reported time, new legislation provisions which allow the Court to authorise a “Statutory Will”.…

AVO: Consenting to (Part 1)

In AVO (Part 1 & 2)” we discussed the procedure involved in having an Apprehended Violence Order made when you feel you are in need of protection. In this article we will discuss what to do if someone is asking the Court to make an Apprehended Violence Order against you. Legal Aid is generally not…

AVO Hearing (Part 2)

In “Consenting to AVO” we discussed the situation where a person applies to the Court to have an Apprehended Violence Order made against you. We discussed the procedure of going to Court, and consenting to an order, and the consequences of an Order being made. Now we will discuss what happens if you do not…

Court: Attending Court

You have received a Court Attendance Notice for a criminal offence and have to go to the Local Court on a specified date and time. There are some fundamental things that may sound obvious, however it is amazing that people when faced with a situation that could change their lives, forget the most obvious things.…

Merit Program

When a person is facing criminal charges in the Local Court, and these charges are due somewhat to a drugs/crime cycle, the defendant may be eligible for entry into the Magistrates’ Early Referral Into Treatment (MERIT) program. The adult offender must have a drug problem, and be willing to participate in a program, and be…

Advertising offers: Carbollic

Advertising Puffs Quite often on advertising, there are claims made and challenges set for consumers in a way designed to induce you into purchasing goods or services. But are these just a sales “puff” or are they binding on the company making the promises. All law students study a case from the late 1800’s called…

Mark Taylor

Former Australian cricket captain Mark Taylor states proudly in the Fujitsu advertising “What a great offer from Fujitsu” but is this really an offer? Can you really go into a Fujitsu shop and accept that offer? In reality yes you can, but the law surrounding this is quite different. For an agreement or contract to…

Auctions and Tenders

The Law of Contract | Auctions and Tenders. Remembering that a contract equals offer + acceptance, at an auction, the auctioneer is not “offering to sell”. If this were the case, and 10 people accepted this by raising their hand then 9 of those people would be entitled to damages due to breach of contract.…

Buying: Contract by Ticket

You turn up at the event, gladly hand over your $20, and jam the ticket into your pocket with your change. There is a chance that you could have just made a contract where you acknowledge that you might be hurt or killed! The way that it happens in theory is the person who provides…