The Lifecycle of a Succession Plan: Capacity, Influence and Protecting the Inheritance – recorded 3 program series

Session 1: Capacity Under Pressure: Instruction-Taking in the Harwood Estate

When 79 year-old Margot Harwood attends with her son Daniel to change a long-standing will, fluctuating cognition and Daniel’s involvement raise immediate red flags. This session uses the initial Harwood interview to explore how practitioners can safely manage high-risk instructions and document their reasoning in a way that withstands later challenge. It covers:

• Conducting an advanced capacity assessment under Banks v Goodfellow in cases of fluctuating or borderline capacity
• Managing the presence of family members like Daniel and ensuring Margot’s independence and privacy during key parts of the interview
• Designing and recording probing questions that test understanding, intention and freedom from influence
• Identifying subtle indicators of undue influence, coercive behaviour and potential elder abuse in the Harwood scenario
• When and how to obtain medical or psychological evidence, and how to respond if clinicians are hesitant
• File-note and correspondence techniques that clearly evidence autonomy, informed decision-making and sound professional judgment
• Knowing when declining to act in the Harwood matter becomes necessary and how to exit safely
• Lessons from recent case law developments

Session 2: Protecting the Inheritance: Family Law Risk and Disputed Intentions in the Harwood Plan

Margot’s wish to “protect the inheritance” for her grandchildren is complicated by Daniel’s relationship breakdown and pressure to secure his position. This session uses the Harwood estate plan to examine how asset-protection motives, family law risk and influence concerns can combine to create fertile ground for later disputes. It covers:

• Understanding the real level of protection testamentary trusts in the Harwood plan provide in potential family law proceedings
• Identifying when estate planning is being shaped to shield assets from Daniel’s relationship breakdown — and the practitioner’s professional obligations
• How binding financial agreements might have interacted with Margot’s estate plan, and their limits as a protective tool
• Family law powers to set aside transactions or look through structures involving companies, trusts and third parties
• Preventing poorly documented intention in the Harwood file from becoming damaging evidence in both succession and family law disputes
• Designing estate plans that better withstand scrutiny across both jurisdictions when “protecting the inheritance” is a key driver

Session 3: After Death: Executor Misconduct, Contested Probate and the Harwood File Under Scrutiny

Following Margot’s death, her son Daniel begins administering the estate in ways that raise concerns about conflict of interest and compliance with his fiduciary duties. Her daughter Olivia challenges several aspects of the administration and seeks disclosure of the practitioner’s file. This final session focuses on the post-death lifecycle stage, where administration decisions, recordkeeping and practitioner involvement are tested under the harshest scrutiny. It covers:

• Identifying executor misconduct in the Harwood matter — breaches of fiduciary duty, unilateral decision-making and misuse of authority
• Managing executors who are also beneficiaries, and understanding the practitioner’s obligations when their conduct jeopardises the administration
• What parts of the Harwood file can be compelled in contested administration or probate proceedings, and how documentation is interpreted by the court
• Navigating subpoenas, notices to produce, privilege issues and affidavit evidence when the practitioner’s role becomes part of the dispute
• When judicial advice is necessary to protect an executor, and how to frame the questions to minimise costs, delay and personal exposure
• Strategies for managing executors in conflict, including structured communications, triage of disputes, and avoiding inadvertent advocacy