Estate planning is about peace of mind for you and your family.

It involves a holistic approach and discussion to determine which documents are most appropriate for your stage in life taking into consideration your current and future plans and goals.

Estate planning documents can include:

Wills

A Will can be as simple or as complex as an individual’s circumstances. Specific legal advice should be sought considering life stage, assets, beneficiaries, family structure, business, company or trust concerns.

  • Simple Wills – Singles and couples, or in anticipation of marriage 
  • Complex Wills – Testamentary Trust, Protective Trust, Disability Trust

Enduring Power of Attorney

(Personal and/or Financial)
An Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) appoints certain personal and/or financial powers to one or more persons to act on your behalf, either under your direction while you have capacity, or once you are unable to act for yourself. 

Medical Treatment Decision Maker

(formerly Enduring Power of Attorney – Medical)
The appointment of one or more Medical Treatment Decision Makers allows those appointed to make medical decisions on your behalf when you unable to due to dementia, acquired brain injury, or unconsciousness through an accident or illness, decisions they would reasonably believe you would have made, and to act in accordance with your known preferences and values regarding your health care and possibly end-of-life.

Binding Death Benefit Nomination

A Binding Death Benefit Nomination outlines how you wish your superannuation to be distributed after your death. Tax considerations should be discussed with either your solicitor or financial planner to best plan your superannuation distribution.

Reasons for creating or updating your estate planning documents can include:

  • change of relationship status – marriage, de facto, separation or divorce 
  • starting a family, or when children have become adults
  • death of a partner or spouse
  • increase or decrease in major assets
  • business interests, companies or trusts
  • health issues
  • family structure
  • change to circumstances of a current executor or attorney

Increasingly, institutions such as banks, health and aged care providers are requesting there are Enduring Powers of Attorney and/or Medical Treatment documents in place to ensure an individual’s matters are dealt with in accordance with their wishes and to avert unauthorised activity

FAQ about Estate Planning

A Will sets out a person’s wishes on how they want their estate to be distributed after death. By the appointment of one or more Executors, the estate can be administered and distributed in accordance with the intentions of the deceased.

 If a person dies without holding a valid Will, then all their personal assets are dealt with pursuant to the Administration & Probate Act 1958 with an application made to the Supreme Court for what is known as Letters of Administration.

Someone with a close connection to the deceased such as spouse or de facto, parent, child or sibling may make an application for Letters of Administration to take control of the deceased’s assets and then distribute those assets strictly in accordance with the provisions of the legislation, which may not align with the wishes or intentions of the deceased.

A Will remains valid until it is revoked by the making of a new Will or altered by the making of a Codicil.

Under certain circumstances, a Will may be challenged.  This may include contesting the validity of the Will, or if someone believes they have not been adequately provided for.  Each Will and estate is different, and the reasons for contesting are varied and limited.  Specific legal advice should be sought to determine the grounds and potential outcome of contesting a Will.

It is important to review and update your Will when there is a change in your personal circumstances; where your current Will no longer reflects your intentions or cannot be reasonably administered in its current form.  This can be due to a relationship breakdown or entering into a marriage or de facto partnership.

Yes.  Specific bequests can be incorporated into your Will – such as jewellery, collections, a monetary amount, donation to charity, or vehicles to name a few – after which the residual estate is distributed according to your wishes.

You may wish to make a new Will, or a Codicil to the last Will.  A Codicil is an additional legal document that modifies your will, such as replacing an Executor who has pre-deceased you, or changing beneficiaries or bequests.

An Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) appoints certain personal and/or financial powers to one or more persons to act on your behalf while you are living, either under your direction while you have capacity, or once you are unable to act for yourself.  

Once a person loses capacity, and if they do not have a valid EPA in place, then application can be made to VCAT to appoint an Administrator or Guardian to manage the affairs of the person.  This can be a lengthy process for those making the application.

An Appointment of Medical Treatment Decision Maker (AMTDM) appoints one or more people to make medical decisions on your behalf when you unable to due to dementia, acquired brain injury, or unconsciousness through an accident or illness, and to make decisions they would reasonably believe you would have made, and to act in accordance with your known preferences and values regarding your health care and possibly end-of-life.  

In the absence of an AMTDM, health care providers default to the next-of-kin, however at an already distressing time, a complex family dynamic may lead to dispute.