A legal opinion is not essential to an application for judicial advice under s 96 of the Trusts Act 1973 (Qld) where the relevant material is otherwise apparent from the material before the court, though its absence may affect the exercise of discretion. The coincidence of interest between an executor who is also sole beneficiary and the estate does not preclude a finding that defence of proceedings is in the best interests of the estate. On a summary application for judicial advice, the court should not endeavour to decide the issues in the main proceeding; where the claim is based on contested oral conversations, a 50/50 assessment of prospects may properly be treated as a neutral factor.
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