Trusts & Estates
An Australian Priest’s Estate is Settled ... 70 Years After His Death
Posted Oct 16, 2008, 12:12 pm CST
By Martha Neil
A Catholic priest in Australia apparently had a will when he died in 1938. But confusion caused by the way in which he had handled an older sister's estate and court delay prevented it from being settled until now.
During that time, Michael Joseph Treacy's initial estate of not quite $7,000, in U.S. dollars, grew to about $144,000, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
"His dying wishes were complicated because he promised more than he could afford and his older sister had left him her estate, confusing which assets were his and which he held in trust for his sister."
Despite bursts of legal activity in the 1940s and early 1970s, the estate matter apparently sat unaddressed for lengthy periods of time throughout the past 70 years. Meanwhile, another of Treacy's sisters, who was his primary beneficiary, died, as did the original executor, judge and several lawyers, the newspaper notes.
About a year ago, the matter was reactivated. When Justice William Windeyer apportioned the money between charities and church organizations in a ruling this week, he noted that he wanted the estate settled before he retired.