STEP(WA): 2026 Full Day Conference - The Protection and Transition of Family Wealth

This event is dedicated to the overarching theme of protecting and transitioning family wealth for the next generation through targeted strategies that address both preservation and seamless intergenerational transfer. The event is designed to appeal to the legal, accounting and financial planning community.

Attendees will gain from the high calibre of speakers and professional insights drawn from leading Western Australian expertise and will receive a written paper on each topic as well as CPD points.

The programme will provide significant technical breadth, with key sessions proposed at examining the impact of the Division 296 tax on superannuation benefits, practical succession strategies for farming families, the Supreme Court’s approach to gifts to charities, remedies relating to issues with trusts, tips for succession planning and a review of current and contentious issues in this space.

The ticket price will also include full catering with a coffee cart, morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea served throughout the day together with extensive networking opportunities to foster connections within the estate planning professions.

STEP members will receive a discounted ticket price, and early registration will secure a further discounted rate.

SPEAKERS:

Sarah Walton and Donnelle Hestelow, Mills Oakley

Sarah is Special Counsel at Mills Oakley, Perth. Sarah was admitted to practice in England and Wales in 2006, and NSW and WA in 2007. Sarah has been a past treasurer and secretary of STEP Western Australia. Sarah currently sits on the STEP WA main committee and chairs our Update publication. Sarah is also a qualified geography, history, civics and citizenship, economics and catholic education secondary school teacher and busy mum with an entourage of three children.

Sarah’s career spans private practice, a trustee company and time in the private client division of a leading bank. Sarah is an empathetic, pragmatic, and solutions‑driven lawyer who helps clients navigate their estate planning and estate administration needs with clarity and confidence. She is committed to delivering cost‑effective outcomes while providing support that is both compassionate and practical.

Donnelle is one of Western Australia’s accredited specialists in Wills and Estates and a Partner at national law firm Mills Oakley. With qualifications in law, accounting, and finance - and graduating nearly 20 years ago with First Class Honours and several university prizes - she brings both expertise and a genuine love of learning to her work. She also proudly holds the STEP TEP designation.

Donnelle presents on estate topics across Australia, sharing insights in a way that feels practical, thoughtful and easy to connect with.

As a mum, a long-term partner, and a daughter caring for ageing parents, Donnelle understands how much family, legacy and life transitions shape the choices people make. This connection is what drives her - helping people feel supported, informed and understood during moments that can feel overwhelming.

Like many of you she walks alongside clients through loss, business changes, and family conflict, and she celebrates their milestones with equal sincerity - weddings, new babies, financial achievements, and everything in between. That blend of steadiness and warmth is central to how Donnelle practises. Colleagues and clients know Donnelle for her ability to listen, her calm presence and her genuine care - often shared over a chat and a cup of tea. Those who work in this area know how important, honest succession conversations are, and clients value the steadiness and thoughtfulness she brings to every step of that journey.

Presentation Summary - Strong relationships grow strong farms

Good estate planning is not just about the documents.  It is about the relationships, conversations and understanding the importance of stress testing the plan before it is needed. 

This practical presentation considers how to manage the wealth transfer effectively while preserving the long-term viability of the family farm and provides insights and advice from some of the key players in farming matters.

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Michelle Bennett, Francis Burt Chambers

Michelle is a barrister with a broad practice and a particular passion for equity, trusts and deceased estates. Since returning to Perth in 2023, she has developed a practice focused on wills and estates, including family provision claims, novel estate disputes and disputes concerning testamentary intentions.

Michelle has a particular interest in the intersection between family provision and charitable bequests, and a strong commitment to protecting the interests of charities in deceased estates. She also has experience in unusual succession disputes, including disputes concerning burial and the disposition of ashes. She regularly advises and represents executors, beneficiaries, charities and claimants in estate disputes and appears in the Supreme Court of Western Australia, State Administrative Tribunal and at mediations.

Michelle is a member of the Law Society of Western Australia’s Elder Law Committee and Women Lawyers of Western Australia Committee, and regularly contributes to the STEP WA Newsletter. She has been recognised in Doyle’s Guide as a leading junior counsel for Wills & Estates Litigation in Western Australia (2025).

Presentation Summary - Does charity begin at home? Charitable Bequests and Family Provision in WA

What happens to a testator’s charitable intentions when a Family Provision Act claim is brought against the estate?

This presentation examines the Western Australian Supreme Court’s approach to charitable bequests in family provision proceedings. It considers when, and to what extent, the Court will make provision for eligible applicants at the expense of gifts intended for charities.

The presentation will explore the competing principles of testamentary freedom, the statutory obligation to make adequate provision for eligible applicants, and the particular significance the Court may attach to charitable intentions. It will consider recent WA authorities and identify practical implications for practitioners advising testators, charities, executors and family provision claimants.

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Grahame Young, Francis Burt Chambers

Grahame is a barrister at Francis Burt Chambers. He has been an active member of STEP and other professional bodies for many years and has delivered many papers on a range of topics. His main areas of interest now centre on structuring and restructuring for generational succession.

He is the editor of Duties Legislation Western Australia.

Presentation Summary - Discretionary Trust - New Problems, Old Problems, Fresh Insights

Discretionary trusts continue to throw up a variety of problems, some of which can lead to disasters. This presentation deals with a few of them.

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Brendan Ashdown, John Toohey Chambers

Brendan Ashdown TEP has been admitted to legal practice for over 30 years and commenced practice at the WA bar in 2005. Brendan undertakes trial and appellate work with an emphasis on equity & trusts, contentious wills & estates, insolvency and family law property matters (involving trusts, deceased estates, company, insolvency & third party issues). Brendan has been a member of STEP WA since 2009 and is currently a member of the WA Health Human Research Ethics Committee.

Presentation Summary - 7 Sins and Their Lethality: Current and Contentious Issues in Estate Planning and Will Drafting

• SIS Act death benefits and the 2 payments rule

• Binding Death Benefit Nominations

• Wills and the superannuation received by the Estate

• Pay all my debts – but did you really mean all?

• Equalisation clauses

• Testamentary trust clauses

• Access to the Will Drafter’s file – and the Accountant’s and Financial Planner’s too

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Ian Raspin, BNR Partners

Ian Raspin has specialised in the taxation of deceased estates since 2000. In 1998 he commenced his career with BNR Partners, which was named the 2019/20 global winner of ‘mid-sized accounting firm of the year’ in the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) private client awards held in London.

Ian is recognised both nationally and internationally on Australian estate taxation matters. He is both a published author on estate taxation and a frequent presenter at both legal and accounting conferences and events, including for various Law Societies, STEP, CPA Australia, the Tax Institute and the College of Law. Ian also regularly provides in-house training sessions for legal firms and trustee companies, and consults with professional bodies, regulators and the private sector on estate taxation issues.

Ian is actively involved in the professional arena and was awarded the global Society of STEP Founders Award in 2026 for his work on the STEP Australia board, was a 2017 finalist in the Tax Institute of Australia’s SME Tax Advisor of the year Awards and the recipient of CPA Australia’s 2016 Henry Fox Award for services to Public Practice.

Presentation Summary - Tax Reform in Practice: CGT, Superannuation and Deceased Estates

Australia's recent tax reforms have fundamentally reshaped the taxation of income from residential rental properties, capital gains and superannuation. While these changes are not directed at deceased estates, their consequences will increasingly affect estate planning, estate administration and succession strategies.

This session explores two areas that succession lawyers cannot afford to ignore. First, the emerging negative gearing/CGT regime, including quarantining and use of residential rental property losses, the loss of pre-CGT asset status,  the replacement of the 50% CGT discount with cost base indexation, new net capital gain calculation rules and the introduction of a minimum tax on capital gains. Second, the new Division 296 superannuation tax, with a focus on the practical issues that can arise on death, including potential mismatches between tax liabilities and estate assets, and the treatment of reversionary pensions.

The session is designed to help practitioners identify the issues, risks and planning opportunities that may arise as these reforms begin to influence succession outcomes.

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William Moore, Hall and Wilcox

William leads Hall & Wilcox’s national Private Client practice, and  is widely regarded as a leading practitioner in the area of succession planning, trusts, estates and estate litigation. William is a Law Institute of Victoria Accredited Specialist in Wills & Estate Law, a recommended lawyer by Chambers and by Doyle's Guide and a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP)

He has a broad range of clients, from those with young families to some of Australia’s largest family groups, as well as business owners and people moving towards retirement. This has provided William with practical insight into many issues, concerns and needs that arise at different stages of life.

Presentation Summary - The $5.4 Trillion Question: Navigating Wealth Transfer in an Ageing Nation

Australia is on the brink of the largest intergenerational wealth transfer in its history, with more than $5.4 trillion expected to change hands over the next 20 years. This unprecedented transition is reshaping the landscape of probate, superannuation, taxation, and financial advice.

Drawing on insights from the 2025 Australian Probate Report, this session will explore the demographic, legal, and policy forces driving change — and the role of advisers in guiding families across multiple generations through this complexity.  What are the client risks, what are the practice considerations, and what can you do as practitioners to best help your clients navigate this transfer.

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CPD POINTS:

6 CPD Points will be available for this event.

STEP Western Australia is approved by the Legal Practice Board of Western Australia as a QA provider of CPD.

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We would like to thank our full day conference sponsors!

Please note that Webinar is not available for this conference.