Estate Planning

Why have a will? Why have a lawyer prepare a will? Superannuation, de facto relationships, blended families, a surviving spouse having to otherwise share ownership of the family home with minor children – they are some of the answers.

In a global sense those questions were best answered by Justice Martin of the Supreme Court of Western Australia when he said the following;

This is an age where people outlay significant amounts on a regular basis to update their phones - so they are equipped with the latest technology. But a small outlay to correctly execute a will to secure potential benefits for loved ones and dependants should be an elevated priority. A person's last will is perhaps the most important document that they will ever sign in their lifetime. The long-term worth of leaving a valid will always exceeds the cost of a new electronic device.

Further, what you save might be inconsequential when compared to what it may cost your intended beneficiaries. Justice Martin again:

[I]t seems to me that the dominant cause of all problems the parties have encountered (which has driven them into long-term litigation with all the resulting costs expenditures necessarily involved) must, with due respect, be seen as attributable to the late Ron Lee himself. He is the man who died leaving an estate of many millions of dollars in terms of assets, but with a wholly inadequate homemade will - that did not validly dispose of any of his property. Every problematic issue which has since emerged for resolution could have been avoided had there been a valid will for Ron - which dealt appropriately with the assets of his estate of many millions of dollars. A viable will might have cost Ron a few hundred dollars in fees to prepare. But what has ensued after his death, essentially looks to me to be over $1 million worth of essentially wasted costs being incurred in litigation arising between members of the Lee family.

The same problems can arise no matter the size of the estate.

There are other ways I can help: powers of attorney; enduring powers of attorney; enduring powers of guardianship, special disability trusts.