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Olivia Mead was awarded $25 million in February 2015 after challenging the provision made for her in her late father Michael Wright’s will. That was the Supreme Court of Western Australia’s trial decision, not the final outcome: in November 2017, the Court of Appeal set adequate provision at $6.142 million.
What happened to Olivia Mead’s inheritance claim?
Mead, then a 19-year-old university student, sought further provision from the estate of her father, mining heir Michael Wright, arguing that the provision under his will was inadequate. The will included a $3 million trust she could access when she turned 30. In February 2015, the Supreme Court of Western Australia ordered a $25 million lump sum in place of that trust provision, subject to Mead relinquishing her claim to the trust. ABC News reported the trial award; PerthNow, carrying AAP reporting, also covered the decision.
How much did the appeal leave her?
Wright’s estate appealed the trial decision, arguing that the original provision was sufficient and challenging the size and basis of the award. In November 2017, the Court of Appeal reduced the provision to $6.142 million. ABC News reported the appeal outcome. Contemporary reporting said Mead had received $3 million, with the remaining amount held in trust until she turned 30. The $6.142 million figure is the appellate provision; it should not be confused with the $25 million trial award or treated as an amount all paid immediately.
| Stage | Amount | What it represents |
|---|---|---|
| Will provision | $3 million | Trust provision reported in 2015; accessible when Mead turned 30. |
| Trial, February 2015 | $25 million | Supreme Court of Western Australia award replacing the trust provision, conditional on relinquishing her claim to the trust. |
| Appeal, November 2017 | $6.142 million | Court of Appeal’s revised measure of adequate provision; reporting said the balance after $3 million received was to remain in trust until age 30. |
Who was Michael Wright?
Wright died in April 2012, aged 74. He was the son of mining magnate Peter Wright, who was Lang Hancock’s business partner in Western Australia’s iron-ore industry. Olivia Mead was born from Wright’s relationship with her mother, Elizabeth Mead, in the 1990s. ABC’s appeal coverage provides the family and estate context alongside the revised provision.
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What the reported figures do—and do not—show
The central change was from a $25 million trial award to $6.142 million set on appeal. ABC’s coverage of the appeal mentioned a Perth-area home valued at approximately $1.5 million in discussing the court’s reasoning; that figure is not a separate award or a verified purchase. The report also quoted the Court of Appeal President Michael Buss describing $6,142,000 as adequate provision for Mead’s “proper maintenance et cetera.” The full judgments are not linked in the contemporary reports cited here, so the exact legal reasoning should not be inferred beyond what those reports describe.
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