A family provision claim is an application to the Supreme Court of New South Wales for a share or a larger share from the estate of a deceased person.

You can make a family provision claim if you:

are an ‘eligible person’, and

have been left out of a will, or

did not receive what you thought you were entitled to receive.

A family provision claim must be filed with the court within 12 months of the date of death (where the deceased person died on or after 1 March 2009).

It is not necessary to obtain a grant of Probate or a grant of Letters of Administration before making an application for family provision.

A family provision claim can only be made by an ‘eligible person’.

An ‘eligible person’ includes:

• the wife or husband of the deceased
• a person who was living in a de facto relationship with the deceased (including same sex couples)
• a child of the deceased (including an adopted child)
• a former wife or husband of the deceased
• a person who was, at any particular time, wholly (entirely) or partly dependent on the deceased, and who is a grandchild of the deceased or was at that particular time a member of the same household as the deceased
• a person with whom the deceased was living in a close personal relationship at the time of the deceased person’s death.

If you are an eligible person and you think you are entitled to make a claim on the deceased estate, you should get legal advice. Your application must be made to court within 12 months from the date of the deceased’s death.

Bob will guide you through the process of making a claim on the estate.

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If you are unsure if you are an eligible person you should get legal advice before you make a family provision claim.

Bob will explain to you whether or not you might be an eligible person.

Before making an order, the court will consider the following:

• the relationship between the applicant and the deceased person
• any obligations or responsibilities owed by the deceased person to the applicant
• the value and location of the deceased person’s estate
• the financial circumstances of the applicant, including their current and future financial needs
• whether the applicant is financially supported by another person
• whether the applicant has any physical, intellectual or mental disabilities
• the applicant’s age
• any contribution made by the applicant to increase the value of the estate
• whether the deceased person has already provided for the applicant during their lifetime or from the estate
• whether the deceased person provided maintenance, support or assistance to the applicant
• whether any other person is responsible to support the applicant
• the applicant’s character
• any applicable customary law if the deceased was Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander
• any other claims on the estate
• any other matter the court may consider as relevant.

If you die without a valid will (known legally as ‘dying intestate’), a standard formula is used to distribute your property and possessions. Usually, this means all your assets will pass to your spouse or children.

But the situation becomes much more complex if you have a legal spouse and a de facto spouse (ie you’ve separated and have a new unmarried partner), if you have children from different relationships, or if you die with no spouse and no children.

The court’s formula usually also only lets your family members inherit from you. So having a valid will is vital if you want to leave gifts to friends or charities.