They say blood is thicker than water, but when money and inheritance enter the picture, family ties can quickly unravel.
That was the unfortunate outcome in the recent Queensland Supreme Court decision of Patterson v Weatherald [2026] QSC 243.
A brother and sister were appointed joint executors and equal beneficiaries of their late father’s estate.
However, rather than working together, their relationship deteriorated to the point where court intervention became necessary.
The brother had been living rent-free in an estate property, collecting rent from another property without properly accounting for it and delaying the administration of the estate.
His sister had had enough.
She successfully applied to have them both removed as executors, with the court appointing an independent administrator.
To make matters worse for the brother, he was ordered to personally pay his sister’s legal costs.
The lesson?
Appointing your children as joint executors might seem fair, but it can prove disastrous if they cannot cooperate.
Trent Wakerley, director, Wakerley Legal, Level 3, Ocean Central, 2 Ocean Street, Maroochydore, 5443 9600, wakerleylegal.com.au.
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