Bourdales v Carroll; Estate of Diane Holbrook [2007] NSWSC 1057

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : Bourdales v Carroll; Estate of Diane Holbrook [2007] NSWSC 1057

HEARING DATE(S) : 17/9/07 JURISDICTION : Equity Division Probate List

JUDGMENT OF : Young CJ in Eq

EX TEMPORE JUDGMENT DATE : 17 September 2007

DECISION : Caveats lodged by defendants upheld. Grant of letters of administration to be made to the Public Trustee.

CATCHWORDS : SUCCESSION [84]- Wills Probate and Administration- Probate and Letters of Administration- To whom granted- Deceased died intestate, unmarried and without children- Deceased's uncle and aunts next of kin- Uncle seeks grant of administration- Opposed by four aunts who seek appointment of Public Trustee as administrator- Held, right of administration is in aunts notwithstanding that uncle applied first, theirs being the greater interest- Grant made to Public Trustee.

LEGISLATION CITED : Public Trustee Act 1913, s 18

Bain v Morabito (Powell J, 14/8/1992) BC 9201674 Re Loveday [1900] P 154 CASES CITED : Re Parsons (1887) 13 VLR 169 Re Slattery (1909) 9 SR (NSW) 577 Re Whitelaw (1936) 36 SR (NSW) 469

Victor Edouard Bourdales (P) Marie Marthe Carroll (D1) PARTIES : Yvette Liddle (D2) Sylvia Hartley (D3) Camille Gnauck (D4)

FILE NUMBER(S) : SC 112185/07

COUNSEL : M Dempsey SC and V McWilliam (P) M Meek (D)

SOLICITORS : John S Zouroudis & Co (P) Adrian Twigg & Co (D)

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES EQUITY DIVISION PROBATE LIST