Page 4109 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 22 October 1991
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
There have been enormous injustices where, in circumstances like those described by Mr Collaery, a person who clearly has been a victim of enormous long-term domestic violence, has picked up a rifle that was aimed originally at them, taken a life, been convicted of manslaughter, and effectively lost the matrimonial home. That, clearly, is unjust, and this is, to that extent, a very significant reform.
The proposals for simplifying informal wills have their genesis, essentially, in work done by the Law Society in this Territory, in particular, the work of Charles Rowland from the ANU. I made reference to that in the introductory remarks. After the Bill was tabled Mr Rowland did have some concerns about the appropriate standard of proof to be employed in this. As a result of his concerns, which were conveyed to me, to the Law Office and to Mr Collaery, we had cause to look very carefully at the law and learning on this subject in other States that have moved towards informal wills. On balance, we thought that we had got it right the first time around and that his concerns were perhaps not accurate.
There was considerable discussion between Mr Bailey of the Law Office and Mr Rowland. At the end of the day, I am pleased to say, Mr Rowland took the view that his concerns were perhaps not well founded and that the Bill, as originally proposed, and proposed by him in that work that was done for the Law Society some years ago, was, in fact, the best fit for the circumstances of the Territory.
In particular, I think he had concern, as did the Government, that it was inappropriate to adopt a different standard of proof here for informal wills from that applying in New South Wales because of the obvious cross-border flow of testators. It is very common for a person domiciled in the Territory during their working life to move down to the coast, and vice versa. The profession also has a fair degree of exchange between here and New South Wales. We thought it was best to keep to the New South Wales standard of proof for informal wills and, at the end of the day, Mr Rowland agreed with that. Therefore, some amendments which Mr Collaery had foreshadowed earlier on have not been passed this evening.
Mr Speaker, these reforms, though technical black-letter law and thus mostly of interest to lawyers, do make a significant change in the law. They do make it easier for the citizens to express their wishes as to what should occur to their estate after their death, and it makes it easier for those wishes to be implemented. It means that citizens will not be frustrated by the technicality of the law, which is the most common complaint and criticism about black-letter law. These three Bills make the law simpler and more accessible, and therefore more just and in keeping with the principles of social justice which my party is proud to espouse. I commend the Bills to the house. I am grateful for the general support they have received and I wish them a speedy passage.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .