Guide to Making a Will
Making a Will and Powers of Attorney
There is a lot more to writing a Will than just writing down your wishes as to who should receive your estate. Just like you, your will does not exist in a vacuum and is part of a much bigger picture involving various aspects of your life.
Our job is to educate you about how your situation is affected by estate law and guide you through the decision-making process to produce a valid and appropriate Will that caters to your specific needs.
The big questions are:
Who is in your family and/or who might think they are entitled to share in your estate?
What are your assets and how do you own them – in your own name or together with someone else?
Family
We need to understand who are your closest living blood and legal relatives, and whether or not you have a relationship with them so we can advise you about your rights and obligations as a Willmaker.
Full names of anybody who you will mention in your Will.
Plus address, phone number and dates of birth required for those who will act as your Executors or Powers of Attorney.
Assets
It is vitally important to know what assets your Will can and can’t control, and whether other things need to be put in place in order to achieve your desired outcomes following your death.
Please consider the areas listed below. Don’t worry if you don’t have all the answers we can discuss where to find them. It is also useful to have an approximate idea of the value of each asset so we can determine what structures to put in your Will.
Real Estate
Mortgage? Which bank?
Ownership - sole? Joint tenants? Tenants in common?
Title details
Bank Accounts
Which bank?
Sole name?
Joint names?
Investment Shares
Which companies?
Term deposits?
Superannuation
Fund name
Death benefit? (Life insurance component)
Nominated beneficiary
Binding or non-binding nomination of benefit
Family Trust or Company
Trust name and Trustee name eg. ABC Pty Ltd as trustee for the ABC Family Trust
Power of Attorney
A Will is important when you die but a power of attorney is equally important if you become unable to make decisions for yourself during your life.
Click the following link to download our Guide to Making a Will