Cetojevic v Cetojevic

The case of *Cetojevic v Cetojevic* concerned an appeal from a decision of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute involved competing claims to the estate of the deceased, Mr. Cetojevic, with the appellant, his former wife, seeking to establish a constructive trust over certain assets and also pursuing a claim for provision from the estate under the *Family Provision Act 1982* (NSW). The respondent was the executor of the deceased's estate.

The primary legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the deceased's former wife had established a constructive trust over assets held by the deceased, specifically whether a joint endeavour between the parties had broken down and if the circumstances were such that it would be unconscionable for the deceased to retain the assets. Additionally, the court had to determine whether certain assets, which were held in joint tenancy and not severed before the deceased's death, should be considered part of the "notional estate" for the purposes of the family provision claim, and whether the deceased had received full consideration for the transfer of those assets.

The Court of Appeal affirmed the primary judge's findings. Regarding the constructive trust, the court held that the evidence did not establish that the joint endeavour had broken down in a manner that would give rise to an unconscionable outcome if the deceased retained the assets. On the family provision claim, the court found that the deceased's former wife had not provided full consideration for the transfer of the joint tenancy assets, and therefore, these assets were correctly included in the notional estate for the purposes of assessing her claim. The court applied established principles relating to constructive trusts arising from joint endeavours and the provisions of the *Family Provision Act 1982* concerning notional estate.

The appeal was dismissed, and the appellant was ordered to pay the costs of the appeal.