Official Receiver in Bankruptcy v Schultz

The applicant, the Official Receiver in Bankruptcy, sought special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia against a decision of the Full Court concerning the administration of a bankruptcy. The dispute involved the bankrupt, Mrs Schultz, who was a beneficiary of a deceased estate. Following the death of Mrs Pereira, Mrs Schultz was to receive personal property, including jewellery and a house. A testator's family maintenance application had been made, and an initial order granted the widower an absolute interest in the house property.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether a beneficiary's interest in an unadministered estate constitutes a single chose in action, or whether separate choses in action arise in respect of each distinct property interest within the estate. The applicant conceded that if there were two separate choses in action, the Full Court's decision would be correct. A secondary issue, concerning the retrospective effect of an earlier Full Court decision on the testator's family maintenance application, was also raised but set aside for the purpose of determining the primary issue.

The applicant argued that a beneficiary's right in an unadministered estate is a single chose in action, drawing on the Privy Council's decision in *Livingston v Commissioner of Stamp Duties (Qld)*. In *Livingston*, it was held that a beneficiary's interest in an unadministered estate is a single entity, with the executor holding the entire property in full ownership for the purposes of administration. The applicant contended that this principle supported the view that the beneficiary's right was not divisible into separate choses in action for each asset.