What Should I Think About Before Seeing A Lawyer About My Will?
Thinking about making or updating your will? We explain what to consider before meeting with our estate planning lawyer Paul Ippolito, from executors and guardians to assets, superannuation and beneficiaries
Clients often ask me beforehand what they should be thinking about and what information they need at the first initial consultation about their Will.
I always say that we are pretty bespoke about the way that we put our Wills together.
We will go through a full personal assessment of assets, liabilities and the issues that are pertinent to you, and draft a Will accordingly.
So you do not need to have everything worked out before you come in.
But there are some things that do make sense to have in your mind before you come to us as your estate planning solicitor.
Your details
Obviously, we need your full legal name and any other names you are known by.
From there, one of the important questions is - who do you want as your executor?
An executor is an important person who would work with a lawyer when you pass away, to manage your affairs and distribute your estate according to your Will.
Who would you like for that role?
And what if they cannot do it anymore afterwards?
Who would be your backup executor?
Children under 18
If you have children under 18, we also need to talk about who would look after them if one or both parents or guardians have passed away.
There is also the interaction between the guardian and the executor.
The executor and trustee looks after the money until the children are at least 18, if not longer, and the guardian obviously looks after the children.
Who would you like as guardian in your will to look after your children? It is good for you to provide some guidance on this important issue.
What do you own?
Then there is the obvious stuff.
Do you own a home?
Do you have an investment property?
What about your personal possessions?
You might have a car, boat or caravan.
You might have shares in public companies or shares in private companies.
You might have life insurance policies.
You might have specific valuables such as jewellery or collectibles.
You might own a business.
These are all things we talk about.
Superannuation
We also talk about superannuation funds and self-managed superannuation funds.
We talk about binding nominations and making sure that you have got the appropriate binding nomination form in place with the super fund nominating who you want to give the funds to if you pass away, or directing it to your estate.
We also look at making sure it is still there and explain the difference between a lapsing and non-lapsing binding nomination for your super fund.
Who do you want to give your assets to?
Then there is the obvious question - who do you want to give your assets to?
And in what way, shape or form?
What happens if they pass away before you?
If it is children, at what age do you want them to receive their inheritance?
Are we creating testamentary trusts?
And what if everyone passes away on a bad day - your immediate family? Who is your backup?
We call these catastrophe clauses.
And anything else that is important to you
Realistically, we also want to know about any other important issues that are pertinent to you.
If you have got these things in your mind before you come to us as your solicitor, we will be very impressed with you.
But as I have always said to people, I am happy to go through a full and proper assessment.
We do it the old-fashioned way.
I like to map it all out and have an open discussion.
That is why we call ourselves estate planning lawyers.
Thinking about making or updating your Will?
You do not need to arrive with every answer worked out.
The purpose of the estate planning process is to go through your circumstances properly, map out your assets, liabilities, family circumstances and the issues that are important to you, and then put the appropriate documents in place.
