the estate lawyers’ staff

KENT DALZIEL

DIRECTOR

KENT IS RECOMMENDED BY DOYLE’S GUIDE AS A LEADING WILLS AND ESTATES LITIGATION LAWYER

Prior to the establishment of The Estate Lawyers, Kent worked at McCowans Solicitors with a background in commercial and property work before making Will and Deceased estate law his sole focus from 2008.

Kent has been recommended by Doyle’s Guide as a leading Wills and Estates litigation lawyer in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

Kent is on the Executive Committee for Law Australasia. Law Australasia is an association of independent law firms that has been operating for over 30 years. Through a unique sharing of knowledge member firms continually strive to exceed the expectations of their clients.

Kent has also recently been appointed as a Board Member of The MND and Me Foundation. Kent’s connection with MND and Me is that his father, Stephen Dalziel, was diagnosed with MND in 2022. Stephen and the whole Dalziel family received a great deal of support from MND and Me at a time when it was really needed. Kent has joined the board to assist other families in a similar situation to his own.

QUEENSLAND’S BEST WILLS AND ESTATES LAWYERS

Kent regularly accepts appointments in Will disputes or estate litigation matters as Litigation Guardian, this is to act for disabled people and children in order to protect their interests from being lost in any Will dispute or estate litigation.

Kent welcomes referrals from other professionals.  He also acts as Court appointed Administrator of contested estates, Executor of Wills where no family member wishes to act and he acts as Litigation Guardian to advocate for the rights of people under a disability.

Kent accepts appointments by the Supreme Court as Administrator of estates, when an independent person is needed to manage the estate of a Deceased person, normally due to a dispute between either the Executors or the beneficiaries of the Will.

Please click on the following links to see some of the published Judgements in Court matters in which Kent has been involved:

PUBLISHED QUEENSLAND JUDGEMENTS IN COURT MATTERS

• Estate of Manly – a claim by the Deceased’s widow for further provision from his estate

• Estate of Donovan – an argument surrounding the proper payment of the Deceased’s superannuation

• Estate of Dalton – to protect the interests of a disabled beneficiary from a claim by his uncle

• Estate of Colston – a dispute surrounding the removal of an Executor and trustee and the proper administration of a trust

• Estate of Cook - a dispute around the Deceased’s capacity to make their Will

• Estate of Schuhmacher – litigation surrounding the construction and meaning of a trust deed and whether monies in the Deceased’s bank account were estate funds;

• Estate of Petty – where directions where sought from the Court as to the meaning of a Deceased person’s ambiguous Will which the Deceased made at home.

• Estate of Gore - A claim by the Deceased’s de facto for further provision from his estate and an argument of the Deceased’s personal items

• Estate of Buss - A claim by the Deceased’s ex wife for further provision from his estate.

• Estate of Pike - where the named Executor and sole beneficiary under the Will of the Deceased had been convicted of the manslaughter of the Deceased

• Estate of Doleman - An Application successfully removing a litigation guardian from acting on behalf of a beneficiary

• Estate of Forster - A dispute regarding a Mutual Will Agreement made between the Deceased and his second wife where the Deceased’s children from his previous relationship sought disclosure of the financial position of the Deceased’s estate and their step-mother’s personal assets

• Estate of Jacobs - Where the Deceased’s sister was removed as the Executor of the Deceased’s estate and Kent was appointed by the Court as the independent Administrator of the estate

PAUL CAMILLERI

SENIOR ASSOCIATE

Sophie started working for The Estate Lawyers as our office junior. She progressed to be our senior paralegal and thereafter a solicitor after being admitted to practice as a lawyer in 2018. 

After several years of practicing as a solicitor, Sophie now works for us as our Operations Manager to ensure our office runs smoothly and efficiently.

Madi was admitted as a lawyer after previously working as our paralegal while completing her studies. Madi predominately works with Kent and assists clients with their estate planning, estate administration and estate litigation work.

Madi has a strong interest in assisting Executors and Administrators with estate administration work. She is also passionate about assisting clients in relation to Family Provision Applications. Madi was recently successful in representing an Executor in the matter of Temple v Temple whereby the Applicant’s application to receive further provision from the Deceased’s estate was dismissed by the Judge.

Before being admitted as a solicitor, Joe worked for The Estate Lawyers as a paralegal, assisting our solicitors with their estate planning, estate administration and estate litigation clients.

Joe has a strong interest in all litigation matters, particularly Will disputes where the Will-maker’s capacity is in question.