Son plunders sick mum’s will

Couple moved to Queensland after stripping elderly woman’s accounts.

An Auckland man and his wife took nearly $1 million from his ill mother’s accounts and made arrangements to sell the family home as she wrote a new will, a court has found.

Stephen James Jackson listed his parents’ North Shore home for sale just days after his mother, Ivy Jackson suffered a stroke.

Court documents show Jackson and his wife, Linda, also took hundreds of thousands of dollars from his mother’s accounts, before and after she died in 2015, aged 91.

However, despite Justice Roger Bell ruling in favour of Jackson’s brother, Raymond Jackson, who claimed a breach of fiduciary duty, neither Jackson nor his wife have appeared in court after moving to Queensland.

In Justice Bell’s ruling, the pair were found to owe $1,094,980 plus interest to Ivy’s estate.

Ivy suffered a stroke in January 2014, and she and her husband, Fred, were forced to leave their Forrest Hill home for a rest home. The couple had enough savings that they weren’t forced to sell their house.

During her life, Ivy made several wills, all of which stated her three children were to take equal shares from her estate, court documents show.

However, just a week after her stroke, Ivy gave Jackson power of attorney for property and welfare.

On the same day, Jackson signed a listing agreement, seemingly without Ivy’s knowledge, with Ironbridge Real Estate Limited, to sell the Forrest Hill property for $670,000.

Two days later Ivy signed a new will asking the proceeds of a sale of the Forrest Hill property be divided equally among her children.

The rest of the estate was to go to Jackson and his wife, after Ivy had earlier made provisions for Raymond and daughter Andrea, who died in March, 2015.

The home was sold about three weeks after Ivy’s stroke. The proceeds came to $646,507 and were deposited into a bank account under Ivy, Fred and Stephen’s names.

After Fred died in October 2014, and Ivy the following year, $168,464 remained in the account.

The difference of $586,704 had been withdrawn by Jackson, court documents show.

Ivy and Fred also held accounts at ANZ, and Jackson again used his power of attorney to draw funds from those accounts. Up to Ivy’s death, Jackson had withdrawn $338,480 from the ANZ accounts, to a total amount withdrawn after being given power of attorney of more than $756,000.

The judge found Jackson and his wife removed a further $258,255 from the accounts after Ivy died. Raymond also claimed the family home, was sold “with unseemly haste”, at below market value.

A registered valuer said the home was worth $750,000 at the date of sale, but was on-sold on March 6, 2014 for $795,000 and again on November 20, 2014 for $913,000.

When Raymond lodged proceedings at the High Court, and Jackson and his wife were requested to appear, it was noted they had left for Queensland.

“There is persuasive evidence that Stephen and Linda were trying to avoid service,” Justice Bell said in his ruling.

“I am satisfied on the evidence and in the absence of any explanation from Stephen that he breached his fiduciary duty to Ivy.”

There is persuasive evidence that Stephen and Linda were trying to avoid service. Justice Roger Bell