Tamarapa v Byerley

The case of Tamarapa v Byerley involved an application to declare an unsigned document to be the valid will of Kenneth John Gray. Claire Virginia Tamarapa, the applicant, sought an order under section 14 of the Wills Act 2007, as Gray's will was unsigned and did not comply with the formalities required by section 11 of the Act. The respondents, Janice Byerley and Wanda Jean Haskell, were Gray's nieces. The central legal issue was whether the unsigned 2004 document, which was prepared in accordance with Gray's instructions, expressed his testamentary intentions.

Moore J examined the evidence, including the close relationship between Gray and Tamarapa, Gray's promise that Tamarapa's kindness would be rewarded, and Gray's instructions to his solicitors to amend his will in favour of Tamarapa. The Court also considered the considerable delay between Gray's instructions in September 2004 and his death in April 2013, as well as the reasons for the delay. The Court found that Gray either overlooked or forgot about signing the will or he did not think he needed to do anything further. Ultimately, the Court was satisfied that the 2004 document expressed Gray's testamentary intentions.

The Court made an order under section 14 of the Wills Act 2007 declaring the 2004 document to be the valid will of Kenneth John Gray.