Re Robustelle (No 2)

The case of Re Robustelle (No 2) was heard in the Supreme Court of South Australia. The dispute involved the plaintiff seeking a grant of letters of administration with the will annexed of a deceased person, opposed by the caveatrix. The caveatrix alleged that the testator lacked testamentary capacity at the time of making the ultimate will and that she was subject to undue influence at the time of making both the ultimate and penultimate wills. The central legal issue was whether the caveatrix had established a prima facie case against the grant of letters of administration with the will annexed.

The court considered whether the particulars provided by the caveatrix were sufficient to establish a prima facie case, referencing several precedents. The court found that the caveatrix had established a prima facie case, drawing on cases such as Hall v Hall, Banks v Goodfellow, Wingrove v Wingrove, Timbury v Coffee, Nicholson v Knaggs, Veall v Veall, Montalto v Sala, Gardiner v Hughes (No 2), and Moloney v Hayward. The court determined that the allegations of lack of testamentary capacity and undue influence were substantiated enough to warrant further investigation and the granting of a caveat.

The court concluded that the caveatrix had indeed established a prima facie case, thereby opposing the grant of letters of administration with the will annexed. The court acknowledged the weight of the allegations and the need for further evidence to be presented in the ongoing proceedings. As a result, the court issued a caveat against the grant of letters of administration with the will annexed, pending further evidence and argument from both parties.