Peacock v Knox

• 1. Succession
  2. › Wills, probate and administration
  3. › Contested probate
  4. › Testamentary capacity
  5. › Cognitive impairment
  6. › Whether testator suffering vascular dementia had capacity to make will
  7. › Whether primary judge entitled to prefer lay evidence and solicitor evidence over unchallenged expert evidence
  8. › Banks v Goodfellow (1870) LR 5 QB 549
• 1. Succession
  2. › Wills, probate and administration
  3. › Contested probate
  4. › Knowledge and approval of will
  5. › Suspicious circumstances
  6. › Whether age and mental frailty of testator invited suspicion
  7. › Whether evidence of solicitor who took instructions and read will to testator sufficient to dispel suspicion
  8. › Whether primary judge erred in failing separately to consider knowledge and approval
• 1. Succession
  2. › Wills, probate and administration
  3. › Contested probate
  4. › Capacity to make earlier will
  5. › Whether evidence challenging capacity at time of later will raised doubt as to capacity at time of earlier will
  6. › Whether absence of pleaded challenge to earlier will compelled admission to probate
  7. › Whether grant of probate made as of right
• 1. Costs
  2. › Probate proceedings
  3. › Probate exception to costs
  4. › Whether pursuit of litigation through to finality was reasonable
  5. › Whether pursuit of alternative claims disentitled appellant to costs from estate
  6. › Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW), r 42.7

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