My Friend’s Husband Wants To Murder Her

Scott

I have a young friend who is married and has three young children. She has an AVO against her violent husband, who threatens to kill her. The AVO has been breached. She is NOT divorced and no financial settlement has been agreed to yet. The husband has the children three days a week, and the court date to sort this out is soon. I see that under the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act a “spouse and ex-spouse” can get all their partner’s super, plus death benefit. What happens to my friend’s super payout should her husband kill her? How can she protect her super so that all funds would go to her children? Also, if the house is owned as joint tenants, my understanding is that the title passes on death to the survivor, is that right? I hope you can shed some light on this serious matter.

Susan

Hi Susan,

This is a very serious matter, so let me shed some light on it for you:

Her financial affairs won’t matter much if she’s dead.

The ONLY thing that matters right now is her safety (and the safety of her three young kids).

Susan, now is not the time to fret about her finances, but to stop her from being murdered.

Each week, on average, in Australia, a woman is killed by her current or former partner.

All too often women in this situation feel trapped and helpless. They are not. There are people who will help her and look after her, and they’re available 24/7 by calling 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732).

We can — and will — sort out her finances later. Part of the value of this column is showing people each week that they are capable of moving monetary mountains.

For the moment, though, do whatever you can to keep her safe.

Scott.