VIC Estranged husband self appointed as executor of our late daughter's estate

[Caroline W]

Our 31 year old daughter passed away under suspicious circumstances in 2020, and her estranged husband applied to be executor the day after she died. He then collected her superannuation, life insurance and the proceeds from the sale of her house, as well as all of her property. (much of which had been gifted by our family). Her death is still before the coroner.
Are then any legal avenues that I can take, to apply for her assets, especially those gained before her marriage? We purchased shares for her as nine year old that he refuses to release. He is unable to access them as they are held in our names as trustees for her, and we are unable to access them without him signing a release document. They are therefore just accumulating dividends held by state revenue. We no longer know how to contact him as he has moved interstate.
Also, as she held no will and they were seperated, despite being executor can he just assume ownership of all of her assets?

 

[Noel Harris]

This is genuinely a case for two connected but distinct areas: how an estate is distributed where there's no will, and who has a claim to it. Where someone dies intestate, the estate is distributed under the intestacy rules of the relevant state, and a spouse, even an estranged one, is usually still recognised as a spouse for those purposes until a divorce is finalised. That may explain why he has been able to seek appointment as administrator. Being separated, on its own, typically doesn't remove that entitlement.

That doesn't mean he's automatically entitled to everything, though, or that the family has no options. An administrator has to distribute estate assets according to the intestacy formula for the relevant state, not simply take ownership of everything, and if he hasn't done that correctly there may be grounds to challenge the administration. Superannuation and life insurance may also sit outside the estate depending on nominations, trustee discretion and policy terms, so those payments need to be checked separately. Separately, given the suspicious circumstances still before the coroner, that outcome may itself affect entitlement under the 'forfeiture rule' if it's ultimately found he had any involvement in her death, this is worth flagging clearly to your lawyer. These are inheritance dispute and will dispute questions, even though there's no will here, because the same legal framework around entitlement and administration applies.

The shares held in your names as trustees for her are a different matter again. If the trust genuinely holds them for her benefit, her death may mean that beneficial interest now falls into her estate and needs to be resolved with whoever administers it, but the shares themselves are not simply his personal property to withhold a release over, and there may be a path to resolving this without his signature. Given the value involved, the family provisions issues, and his being uncontactable, this really warrants a detailed conversation with an estates and family lawyer as soon as possible.

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Disclaimer: Please note information in this response is general in nature and should not be treated as legal advice. It may not be complete or up to date for your specific situation. Independent legal advice is always recommended.