Kangaroo Island: What a Movie About Two Sisters Can Teach You About Estate Planning

I watched Kangaroo Island recently because it had been so popular and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I’ll be honest – it wasn’t quite my cup of tea. It’s a very sad story, and I wouldn’t normally choose something sad to watch in my downtime. But something in the plot caught my attention as a lawyer.

The film walks through one of the most common – and most painful – estate planning scenarios I see in my practice. And it does it in a way that’s genuinely hard to forget. So I wanted to share what I noticed, what the movie gets right, and – just as importantly – what it leaves out.

The Story of Kangaroo Island

Lou Wells (played by Rebecca Breeds) left Kangaroo Island years ago to pursue an acting career in Hollywood. Her sister Freya (Adelaide Clemens) stayed behind on the island, living a quieter, more grounded life. Their mother passed away a long time before the story begins, and their father has been managing the family’s waterfront property on his own.

When their father decides to bring Lou home, he gathers the family together and delivers the news: he wants to keep the property in the family, and he’s decided to leave it to Freya. His reasoning is straightforward – Freya is here. She’s the one who can look after it, maintain it, and live on it with her husband.

As you’d expect, Lou isn’t happy. This isn’t about the money for her – it’s about her connection to the place where she grew up. She wants to be part of it too. And that’s where the real tension of the film begins.

The Twist Many Of Us Might Miss

Here’s where it gets interesting – and where the film actually taught me something worth passing on about how estate planning really works in practice.

By the end of the movie, you learn that the father didn’t just talk about giving the property to Freya. He had already transferred it to her – during his lifetime, before he died. That means the property never actually fell into his estate at all.

It’s a clever move in the story. And it’s also a move that has very real legal and financial consequences that the film doesn’t quite get into – which is worth unpacking.

What Would Have Happened Without That Transfer?

A lot of people assume that if a parent passes away without being clear about who gets what, the law will simply split everything equally between the children. It’s one of the most common misconceptions I come across – and it’s not quite how it works.

In this particular situation, if the father had left the property in his estate without transferring it first, Lou wouldn’t have been able to make what’s called a constructive trust claim. No promises were made to her about the property, so there’s no basis for that kind of argument – unlike, say, a situation I see fairly often where a farming son works the land for years based on a verbal promise from his parents.

But Lou could have made a claim against the estate for further provision – on the basis that she was left without adequate provision for her maintenance or education, if her financial circumstances justified such a claim.  Under South Australia’s Succession Act 2023, that’s exactly the kind of pathway that could have been available to her, depending on the facts.  So, the father’s decision to transfer the property beforehand actually shut that door entirely.

But Here’s the Part the Movie Leaves Out

The film makes it look simple: just transfer the property before you die and problem solved. In my experience, it’s not quite that straightforward – and it’s worth understanding why before you make any decisions like that.

Transferring land during your lifetime can trigger a significant stamp duty bill. There may also be a capital gains tax liability at the time of transfer. These are real costs that need to be factored into the decision.

On the other hand, if you leave land to someone through your will, the capital gains tax obligations generally roll over to the beneficiary – meaning there’s nothing to pay until they actually sell the property. And there’s no stamp duty either.

So while the father in the film probably did the right thing for his family, it came at a cost. And sometimes spending that money upfront is the smarter choice – because if you don’t, and a family member makes a claim against the estate, the legal costs of dealing with that can end up being even more expensive.

Every situation I work through is different. Whether there are exemptions available – particularly if farming land is involved – depends on the specific facts of your circumstances. It’s one of those things where the details really matter, and it’s exactly why I take the time to look carefully at each one.

Why Estate Planning Is More Complex Than It Looks

Estate planning isn’t an area of the law that sits on its own, the way that Kangaroo Island sits on its own away from the mainland. It connects to tax law, family law, property law, trust law – and all of those areas interact with each other in ways that can be hard to anticipate.

One of the speakers at a conference I attended recently put it well: this is the area of the law where you need to know the most about every other area of the law. Tax rules change. The Australian Taxation Office and the Stamp Duties office update the way they approach things regularly. In my work, I often need to bring in specialist tax advisers for cases with unusual nuances – because knowing whether a specific exemption applies in those circumstances often requires someone who is across those changes in real time.

Sometimes the tax issues are clear-cut like those in the film.  But sometimes a particular fact in your situation raises just enough uncertainty that you need someone who really knows the current landscape. And I’d rather flag that early than risk getting it wrong to ensure that you are getting full and proper advice about all aspects of your situation.   

The Lesson in the Film

For all its drama, Kangaroo Island actually ends on a hopeful note. Yes, there are bumpy bits along the way – uncomfortable conversations, hurt feelings, and moments where the family relationships feel like they might not recover. But by the time the father passes away, the two sisters are actually closer than they were before.

The father took the time to do his planning, communicate with his daughters, and work through the hard parts while he was still alive to guide them through it. That’s the real takeaway: doing your succession planning and talking to your family about it isn’t just about getting the legal documents right. It’s about giving the people you love the best chance of coming through it together.

Why the Right Adviser Matters

Given how many moving parts are involved in estate planning – tax, property, family dynamics, the law itself – it pays to work with someone who specialises in this area and is genuinely committed to keeping their knowledge current. So let me tell you a bit about what that looks like in practice.

STEP – the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners – is a worldwide organisation for specialists in this field. Membership isn’t something you just sign up for. You have to demonstrate genuine expertise, either through examination or by showing a track record of deep experience, specialist writing, and endorsement from other senior practitioners. I’ve been admitted as a full member through the expertise route – which means my years of experience, the articles I’ve written over time, and the references from senior practitioners in the field were enough to speak for themselves. I didn’t have to sit an exam. My track record did the talking.

Being part of STEP also means I’m required to undertake specialist continuing education every year – so I’m constantly improving my knowledge in this area. And I have access to a network of other experts I can draw on when a particular situation calls for it. So if you’re facing the kind of decisions that play out in Kangaroo Island – but with the real-life tax and legal details the film leaves out – I’d like to help you work through them.

Ready to Have the Conversation?

I know that thinking about estate planning can feel daunting – especially when it involves family. But just like the father in the film, the best outcomes happen when you start the conversation while you’re still able to guide it.

Get in touch with me today to book a consultation. I’ll take the time to understand your situation, explain your options clearly, and help you work out what’s right for your family.