http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/ The latest Blog feeds from www.hjlaw.com.au en-us Mon, 11 May 2026 16:15:54 +1000 Rocketspark http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12698/monthly-insights-april-at-harriss-jones-lawyers/ We’ve come to the end of another month at Harriss Jones Lawyers so it’s time for another update on what we’ve been up to.We hope you all survived the Easter holiday period and if you were tasked with keeping the family busy during school holidays, we hope you were able to also get a break of your own.While we don’t have any major updates this month, we do have some news about changes coming which will have some minor impacts on our clients who may be thinking about purchasing property or... Mon, 04 May 2026 14:16:38 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12698 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12697/the-son-i-never-had-deathbed-wills/ If you think getting your affairs in order before Christmas is stressful, spare a thought for the late Andrew Young.Andrew was a 68-year-old disability pensioner from Morisset, NSW. He had a bushy Father Christmas beard, a love for fishing, and a very complicated estate battle that just wrapped up in the NSW Supreme Court.The case, Corbould v Gay [2026] NSWSC 385, is a wild ride involving a forged-looking will, a jailbird best friend, a "situationship," and almost $600,000 in legal fees. Le... Mon, 04 May 2026 14:09:00 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12697 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12694/loan-agreements-with-friends-or-family/ The Big Picture: This case is a cautionary tale about what can go wrong when friends lend each other money, even when they write down a basic agreement. It shows that without a very clear contract, you can end up in court fighting over three main things: 1) Who actually owes the money, 2) How interest is calculated, and 3) How payments are applied.What happened in this case?The Loan: A woman (Ms. Le) lent $380,000 to a friend (Ms. Huang) to buy a house. The borrower’s male friend (Mr... Mon, 04 May 2026 10:18:50 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12694 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12642/interesting-and-surprising-wills-and-last-wishes/ While most people see a Will as just a tool for distributing their assets, they can capture personal, and sometimes surprising, final wishes. From millionaire dogs to ashes in Pringles cans, this article explores some of the unexpected ways people have used their Wills and why it can be worth thinking beyond the basics to ensure your estate planning covers all of your wishes.Providing for a pet: did you know that you can leave money for your pet in your Will? They cannot be a beneficiary, but yo... Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:49:30 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12642 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12641/understanding-the-courts-focus-on-ncat/ If you have ever dealt with a legal matter or simply watched the news, you will have heard references to various courts and tribunals without necessarily knowing what each one does or why it matters to you. For clients navigating wills, estates, and elder law, understanding which body handles which type of dispute can save significant time, money, and stress.This article gives a plain-English overview of the key forums relevant to estates work in New South Wales, with a detailed look at the NSW ... Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:40:24 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12641 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12640/importance-of-professional-estate-planning/ Most people will know that they should put a Will in place to protect their assets, but will not know how best to do this. Post-office Wills or DIY Will kits are a tempting option for many. They are inexpensive, time efficient and accessible. So why go to a lawyer to get this done when it will cost more?Opting to do a DYI Will has numerous potential downfalls. Wording may be unclear and ambiguous, you may fail to meet the formal requirements of a valid Will, and the one-size-fits-all approach wi... Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:34:40 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12640 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12476/costs-of-surrogacy/ First, have a read of our previous article ‘Surrogacy Law in New South Wales’ at https://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12393/surrogacy-law-in-new-south-wales/, to understand the legal aspects of the surrogacy process.While there is much to think about, one of the major things to look at are the predicted costs.It is not easy to provide a simple answer to the question of costs. Costs will vary majorly based on individual circumstances and the success of any treatments used. Pregnancy itself is a... Fri, 10 Apr 2026 11:40:28 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12476 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12474/when-a-diary-entry-becomes-a-legal-will/ The storyKenneth Warren Young was 85 years old when he died on 24 August 2022. He was divorced, had no children, and as far as anyone could find, had never made a formal will. He lived alone in Maroubra, Sydney.After he died, his niece Anthea found a notepad sitting on the armchair in his home where Kenneth used to sit. Inside it were three handwritten pages. They weren't a will in any conventional sense. They were the private writings of an old man on two nights, years apart, when he'd felt unw... Fri, 10 Apr 2026 11:38:09 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12474 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12471/future-of-ai-use-in-law/ The use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (‘Gen AI’) has become almost omnipresent in our world. Well known AI tools such as ChatGPT, which was only released in 2022, have rapidly evolved and have the ability to do things we would not have imagined just 10 years ago.The use of Gen AI can work as a transformative tool for the legal system, making processes cheaper, quicker and more accessible, but it must be used with caution. The regulation of technological processes, in particular, AI, ... Fri, 10 Apr 2026 11:31:30 +1000 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12471 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/post/12387/monthly-insights-at-harriss-jones-lawyers-march-2026/ We’ve reached the end of another month at Harriss Jones Lawyers and as always, we’ve been busy helping our valued clients get through their key milestones of life. New home purchases, estate planning and handling the emotional process of deceased estates, we are thankful that our clients choose us for whatever they’re needing support with.On 10 March, Kathryn attended the all-day family law event at Elouera Surf Life Saving Club. This year’s seminars included presentations from Senior Ju... Mon, 30 Mar 2026 08:45:00 +1100 http://www.hjlaw.com.au/blog/#post12387