The Importance of Will and Estate Planning in Adelaide

Drafting legal documents like wills can be a daunting task for many individuals. They think that they can do this work later or that making this document isn’t that necessary. But we are here to break this assumption. We all know that the future is uncertain, and there is no guarantee of what will happen next. So, it is best to plan for the future of your loved ones in advance. 

Wills and estate planning thus become necessary in this case. If you want to learn why they are essential for many reasons, then you are in the right place. So, keep reading further to learn more.

The Importance of Making a Will

The thought of what will happen to your children after you pass away is heartbreaking. Who will take care of them is what you may ask yourself often. But you don't have to worry about this when you draft a will. In this document, you can mention who is the guardian of your minor children. Additionally, you can express a variety of wishes in advance, such as who will inherit your assets and administer the estate, with the help of this document. Now, the main question is: who will perform all the duties mentioned in the will? The answer is an executor. As the name implies, an executor is the person who will follow the instructions stated in the will. They handle everything from funeral planning to identifying beneficiaries, distributing assets, and administering estates.

 

After making a will, you need to review it periodically. Life circumstances can change, so be sure your will reflects your current wishes. There may be certain alterations you want to make due to changes in the number of assets you own, the death of an executor, or a change in family structure (adoption or death of a family member). If there are any changes you feel you need to make, then you should make updates to the document. 

It is undeniable how important will is, as it allows you to specify your wishes and helps protect the future of your loved ones. Along with making a will, you should consider estate planning. It is a comprehensive term that covers drafting other documents, which you can do with the help of Wills and Estates in Adelaide. Let us dive into the details of estate planning.

Estate Planning and Its Importance

It involves curating strategies that help you decide how your assets will be managed after you pass away. It involves drafting various documents, including a will, testament trust, and power of attorney. We have already discussed what a will is, so no, let’s debrief testament trust and POA. 

 

A testament trust involves an arrangement specified in the last will and testament that comes into force after the death of the testator. Creating it is a must if you have children or grandchildren. Unlike in a standard will, where the assets directly go to the beneficiaries, in a testamentary trust, the assets go into trusts, single or multiple trusts. The trustee then manages those trusts and distributes the assets or income from those trusts to the beneficiaries. So what’s the importance of it? With testament rust, the tax liabilities on beneficiaries decrease significantly. 

 

Now, let us understand POA. A power of attorney is a document that helps with asset management while you are still alive. You appoint an attorney, or, we can say, an agent, to whom you transmit the right to make decisions regarding your finances, properties, or medical care while you are still alive. It comes into effect when you become incapacitated to sign documents due to illness or if you lose mental capacity. This document is beneficial for those who frequently travel overseas and can’t foresee legal and financial matters. There are two types of power of attorney: general POA and enduring. In the first type of POA, the agent can’t make decisions on your behalf if you lose mental capacity, whereas in the latter, the agent continues to make decisions even if you are not aware of anything because you become mentally incapacitated. 

 

By drafting all these documents, you can effectively do estate planning. The importance of this process lies in protecting the interests of minors and beneficiaries. They receive the assets you want to distribute to them without any hassle. Plus, estate planning allows you to minimise the tax burden on the beneficiaries.

Conclusion

Finally, will and estate preparation allow you to protect your family's interests while providing you with peace of mind. There are many steps involved in estate planning, and we understand that following all of them can be difficult. That is why, to simplify the documentation process, you need help from Solicitors in Adelaide. They can effectively guide the preparation of the required documents. So visit their website to get started.