Shared from the 9/21/2021 The West Australian eEdition by
Jocelyne Boujos, president of the Law Society of WA
"If you die without a valid will, the State government
will decide what happens to your property. The law will now be
changed so that the statutory scheme for the distribution of
property when a person dies without a will is now, and into the
future, equitable for their survivors.
This amendment to the law is long overdue as the current
amounts, as noted by the State Attorney-General on August 19, 2021,
"are grossly inadequate". The new laws in WA will now
also be equivalent as in all other states.
These amendments are set out in only seven pages, and there
are five clauses, so is indeed small in size but with the potential
to alleviate serious financial problems for almost half of the WA
community, some at their most vulnerable, during a deeply sad time
of their lives. It will truly have a "large impact", as
noted by the Attorney-General when introducing
