Public Trustee v Kehagias [2009] NSWSC 972

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : Public Trustee v Kehagias [2009] NSWSC 972

HEARING DATE(S) : 17 April 2009

JUDGMENT DATE : 17 September 2009

JUDGMENT OF : McLaughlin AsJ

1. I find, upon inquiry, that Nikolaos Kehagias is entitled to succeed to the estate of the late Dimitrios Kehagias ("the Deceased") upon his intestacy. DECISION : 2. I order that the Plaintiff hold the estate of the Deceased for the said Nikolaos Kehagias. 3. I order that the costs of the Plaintiff on the indemnity basis and the costs of the Defendant on the party and party basis be paid out of the estate of the Deceased. 4. The exhibits may be returned.

CATCHWORDS : SUCCESSION - intestacy - next of kin inquiry - Deceased domiciled in New South Wales - effect of adoption of Deceased, as an adult, in Greece - whether under law of Greece adoptive parents were placed generally in relation to Deceased in the position of parents - whether intestate estate passes to son of Deceased's natural parents or to Crown as bona vacantia.

Probate and Administration Act 1898 LEGISLATION CITED : Adoption of Children Act 1965 Adoption Act 2000

CATEGORY : Principal judgment

Armitage v Attorney-General (Gillig cited); Gillig v Gillig [1906] P 135 Igra v Igra [1951] P 404 CASES CITED : MacAlpine v MacAlpine[1958] P 35 Re M and the Adoption of Children Act (1989) 13 FamLR 333 Labiche v Bouton (2 August 1993, unreported) Bouton v Labiche (1994) 33 NSWLR 225

TEXTS CITED : R W Leage, Roman Private Law (2 ed, 1930) P E Nygh and M Davies, Conflict of Laws in Australia (7 ed, 2002)