Children of former Lady Mayoress Valmai Roche win control of mother's estate

VALMAI Roche's children have won control of her $3.5m estate - after the former Lady Mayoress of Adelaide tried to leave them just 30 pieces of silver as "blood money".

VALMAI Roche's children have won control of her $3.5 million estate - but the former Lady Mayoress' final words, denouncing them as traitors, will remain in her will.

The Supreme Court today made a grant of administration in favour of her daughters Deborah, Fiona and Shauna.

The trio had lodged court action contesting the will Ms Roche - wife of 1970s Lord Mayor John Roche - drafted in 1981.

It left them "30 pieces of silver of the lowest denomination of currency" as "blood money due to Judas".

It further required they read her diaries, from 1974 through to 1981, and correctly answer questions about them before receiving her jewellery.

Ms Roche died in 2009, aged 81.

Previously, lawyers for the daughters said they had already agreed upon a fair division of the estate.

They claimed Ms Roche held "fixed, false and incorrigible views" relating to the death of her own mother, Dorothy Haber, "that she could not be reasoned out of".

They said Ms Roche believed her daughters had "aided, abetted and colluded" with Mr Roche to kill Mrs Haber, or "condoned the murder... for financial gain".

They said those passages should be struck from the will because they were blasphemous and offensive.

Today, Justice Tom Gray said those sections merely explained Ms Roche's chosen disbursment of her estate.

"I do not consider that a reasonable person would find the words to be scandalous, offensive, defamatory or blasphemous," he said.

"The removal of the words will have no relevant impact to the division of the estate.

"In all the circumstances, I do not consider it appropriate ... to exclude the impugned words from the deceased's will."

He made the grant of administration and ordered the daughters draw up the necessary documents.