Gina Rinehart fails in attempt to block children removing her from £2.6 billion family trust

Australia's richest woman attempted to get a lawsuit thrown out of court from three of her children, Hope Rinehart Welker, Bianca Rinehart and John Hancock.

The lawsuit brought by Rhinehart's three eldest children aims to effectively remove their mother from the role of sole trustee to a quarter share of Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd. The share is worth an estimated £2.6bn.

The feud came about as Gina Rhinehart extended the trust's vesting date to 2068 to try and prevent "catastrophic financial consequences" from tax.

Personal emails have been made public as part of the case in which Rhineheart describes her three eldest children as lazy and spoilt.

New South Wales Supreme Court ruled that the bid was not "hopeless, without prospects of success or doomed to failure" and could go ahead.