Widow of ‘Australia’s worst landlord’ Frank Cassar wins $15m estate stoush

The widow of Frank Cassar, the man known as ‘Australia’s worst landlord’, has won a years-long battle against her estranged son over her husbands $15m estate.

Sandra Cassar has spent years fighting estranged son Michael over her late husband’s estate. Picture: David Crosling

The widow of ‘Australia’s worst landlord’ has won a years-long battle against her estranged son over her husband’s $15m estate embroiled in a fake will scandal.

Sandra Cassar, 67, spent years fighting son Michael over shares and property which belonged to her husband, controversial Melbourne businessman Frank Cassar, 60, who died of a sudden heart attack in 2011.

Sandra doctored her husband’s will, naming Michael the sole beneficiary of seven Fitzroy properties and the family’s Kew house, after he convinced her it was the only way to stop the Australian Taxation Office from taking “everything”, a court previously heard.

She claimed Michael had promised he’d look after her and her three other children but the estate was never divided, with Michael evicting his mum and siblings from their home.

Despite a Supreme Court judgement in 2022 that revoked probate on the will, listing Sandra instead of Michael as the administrator of the estate, the mother said she was yet to see a cent of her late husband’s assets.

Justice James Gorton on Monday said “fraud existed at every level” of the will and ordered the properties and shares be returned to the family estate, administrated by Sandra.

“Michael was the initiator of the fraudulent design: he caused Sandra to agree to it by falsely telling her that if a will were not created then the family would lose everything, he pressured his sister Teresa to forge their father’s signature, and he told Sandra and the other participants that he would distribute the assets among the family in ‘some fair way’,” Justice Gorton ruled.

“Sandra is not so much seeking to derive advantage from her own wrong, but rather is seeking to undo the consequences of her own wrongful acquiescence in Micheal’s wrong.

“It would be contrary to good conscience to leave things as they presently lie, with Michael receiving the entire estate, and Sandra, as an elderly widow who was married to Frank for more than 30 years, and Micheal’s siblings, all of whom were entitled under an intestacy, to receive nothing.”

Frank’s death came before Victoria changed its intestacy laws in 2017 to say the entire estate would go to a deceased’s spouse or domestic partner if they have no will.

Frank, who had run a panel beating and towing business, had been dubbed the landlord from hell having faced dozens of civil court actions and claims of threatening and intimidating tenants.

The ATO was chasing him for $2.4m in unpaid taxes before his death.

Justice Gorton will make further orders at a later date.