Ken Talbot’s daughter sues administrator of his estate

A daughter of late coal billionaire Ken Talbot is suing the administrator of his estate, claiming delays of nearly a decade have cost her millions.

Ken Talbot with wife Amanda and two of his children

A DAUGHTER of the late billionaire coal baron Ken Talbot has sued the administrator of her father’s estate for damages alleging he breached his duty of care, causing her to lose millions due to his delays.

Alexandra Cecile Talbot, 20, of Taringa in Brisbane, the second youngest of Ken Talbot’s four children, launched her case against Brisbane lawyer Bill Boyd in Brisbane Supreme Court this month.

Ms Talbot, who is entitled to 17 per cent of her father’s estate, claims that nine years after his death in a plane crash in Africa she is still waiting for Mr Boyd to liquidate her father’s assets, but while she waits, the value of shares in an oil and gas exploration company is plummeting.

Late mining magnate Ken Talbot

She claims Mr Boyd should have sold more than 26 million shares in Karoon Energy Limited swiftly, and at least by 2013, a year after he took control of the estate, and that he owed her a duty, as administrator, to distribute the estate as soon as possible, acting in her best interests.

She claims that had the shares been sold in October 2012, they could have fetched $127 million for the estate and $19 million for herself.

Instead, Ms Talbot claims by August 2015 Mr Boyd knew the shares had more than halved in value since 2009 and had “tanked” because oil and gas markets were struggling.

As of May 16 the shares were worth only $24.7 million, the claim states.

Ms Talbot has asked the court to rule on the date by which Mr Boyd should have sold the Karoon Energy shares.

Solicitor Bill Boyd is being sued by Mr Talbot’s daughter.

She also claims Mr Boyd knew prior to his taking control of Talbot’s fortune in 2012 that Talbot’s testamentary wish was that his shares were to be sold within two years of his death, and his estate was to be administered efficiently and expeditiously.

She claims despite failing to sell the Karoon Energy shares, Mr Boyd has paid himself substantial remuneration of $3.76 million out of the estate over six years to last December, and continues to pay himself $650 per hour plus GST for full-time hours worked since January this year.

Ms Talbot said she and her younger sister Claudia Elisabeth Talbot, 17, had only received $12 million each, with $12 million also going to their mother Amanda and $16 million to each of their half-siblings.

The estate was worth an estimated $1.1 billion at the time of Talbot’s death.