Creating a will is the best way to ensure that your family and loved ones are taken care of after you’re gone. It also allows you to decide what happens to your assets, such as property, investments and personal belongings. Since there are various factors involved in creating a will, it would be wise to seek professional advice from an experienced Will Lawyers Melbourne.
Here are some things you should consider when working with our Melbourne law firm:
Setting aside time to create a will
It is important to set aside time to talk to your lawyer about creating a will. We can help you decide who should be listed as beneficiaries, what property should go where and how it should be divided. It is also important that you have the time available to go through all of this with your lawyer so that any questions or concerns can be addressed before moving on.
Once you have decided on all of these things, it will take some time for someone like us at Legal Vision in Melbourne to draft up a document for you so that we can review it together. It is important that everyone involved has enough time to properly review the document before signing off on it because once signed, there cannot be any changes made – even if something changes in life later down the track.
Assessing your assets
- List all your assets, including real estate, cars and motorbikes, personal property (jewellery and other valuables), bank accounts and other investments.
- List all your debts (mortgages on your home or investment properties, loans to family members or friends) if you have made a will in the past but want to ensure that it is up-to-date, including any outstanding debts that were listed on that earlier will.
- List all dependents under 18 years of age or legally incapacitated adults who are financially dependent upon you. If there is someone who provides care for these individuals (for example, an au pair or nanny), make sure they are named as beneficiaries of any gifts in the will so that they can access any funds when needed for their support.
- List all potential guardians for the children if both parents die before the children are 18 years old; this may include siblings or grandparents as well as friends from work or church groups who have indicated an interest in helping out in these circumstances.
Choosing an executor
You want to choose a person who is trustworthy, responsible, organized and reliable. You also need to make sure that they are willing to take on the responsibility of being your executor and do it properly. If there are two possible people you can name as your executor, then consider how much time each will be able to devote to the job.
If you don’t want your loved ones or family members involved in making decisions about your funeral arrangements or other personal matters after death and would prefer someone else do it for you (such as an accountant), then consider including them as one of several beneficiaries under section 5 of the Wills Act 1996 (Vic), which allows people outside of the family circle (including friends) be named in a will as beneficiaries who may have rights over specific items within that estate-like property titles/stocks etc., but not necessarily all assets overall, i.e., everything left behind by deceased person(s).
This option gives more flexibility regarding what happens when one dies because there’s no requirement for any particular ceremony after death; instead, any person who has been designated beforehand will simply step up onto their role without needing approval from anyone else beforehand.”
Preparing for the unexpected
Making a will is an important part of preparing for the unexpected. You should always have one prepared before you go overseas, on holiday or on a cruise. The same goes for any long car trip you may be planning in the future.
The main reason why it’s so important to do this is that if something were to happen and you didn’t have a will in place, then your estate would be divided up according to the legal rules of intestacy, which can often mean that people who are entitled under your will receive nothing at all! Your loved ones could end up having to go through court proceedings which can be expensive and time-consuming.
Choosing beneficiaries and guardians
You may choose to leave your estate to a person, a corporation or an organization. You may also wish to choose who should receive any particular asset in your estate. For example, you might want the balance of your bank account to go towards paying off debts and expenses instead of being divided up between family and friends.
- Minors – A guardian must be appointed for all children under 18 years old if the parents are deceased and for anyone who does not have the capacity to make their own decisions on financial matters.
- Young adults – There is no legal age at which young adults can become independent from their parents’ guardianship requirements; however, it’s generally accepted that this happens around 18 years of age. However, if you have young adults who do not have the capacity to make their own decisions about finances yet but still require some oversight due to past events or circumstances that might cause them harm (e.g., drug addiction), then it’s best practice for them still keep a guardian until they reach adulthood (at which point they can select one themselves). If there is any question as to whether someone should remain under guardianship status during this time period after becoming legally able (18), then we recommend consulting with our lawyers before making any changes yourself.”
Our lawyer can ease your mind in creating a will and ensure it is legally binding.
The process of creating a will is one that can be made easier by having a Will Lawyers Melbourne on your side. When you hire a lawyer to create your will, you are giving them the responsibility of ensuring its validity and making sure it is in line with current laws. The lawyer will also make sure that the document contains all of your wishes so that when they are carried out after death, there won’t be any surprises or issues.
When creating a will, there are certain factors that need to be taken into account. For example:
- Are there any minor children involved? If so, have they been included in their carer’s life insurance?
- What assets do you have, such as property or shares? Do they need to go through probate before they can be distributed?
- Does anyone need special consideration – perhaps because they live overseas or have special needs? Or maybe someone who has left behind children but no spouse/partner (widows/widowers) deserves extra support from family members during this difficult time in their lives.
Conclusion
We hope that after reading this blog post, you are more informed about the process of creating a will. If you have any questions on the topic, don’t hesitate to contact us! The Will Lawyers Melbourne is ready to help you create a legally binding document that reflects your wishes and protects your family members from unnecessary stress after your death.