The Public Trustee v Head

The plaintiff, the Public Trustee, filed an action seeking a determination as to the effectiveness of an informal will of Desmond Henry Pantall, deceased, dated 25 July 1992. The court was required to determine whether the informal will was valid and effective, and if so, whether the Public Trustee was entitled to a grant of letters of administration with a copy of the will annexed. The key legal issue was whether the informal will, which did not comply with the formal requirements of s 8 of the Wills Act 1970 (WA), could still be considered a valid will under s 34 of the Act. The court found that the deceased had the requisite testamentary capacity when he wrote the informal will and that he intended for it to constitute his will. The court concluded that the informal will was a valid testamentary document, and granted the Public Trustee letters of administration with a copy of the will annexed.