A Will is a legal document that outlines how an individual’s possessions and assets are to be distributed and dealt with upon their death. A Will enables an individual to specify who will inherit their property and appoint one or more people to carry out their wishes.

Having a valid will in place at the time of your death enables your family and loved ones to ensure your wishes are followed and can prevent disputes between family members. A Will is an important document for Estate Planning.

Life moves fast and things change so it is important to revisit your Will from time to time to ensure that your wishes reflect your circumstances.

A Power of Attorney is a legal document that enables an individual (“the Principal”) to appoint another person (“the Attorney”) to make decisions and to act on the Principal’s behalf concerning financial and legal matters. A Power of Attorney can be effective for a specified period or can remain in place until the Principal loses their mental capacity or passes away.

An Enduring Power of Attorney enables an individual (“the Principal”) to appoint another person (“the Attorney”) to make decisions and to act on the Principal’s behalf concerning financial and legal matters, even after the Principal has lost their mental capacity.

For some transactions, Powers of Attorney will need to be Registered with the NSW Land and Property Information.

A Power of Attorney can be a useful tool to assist you in the management of your financial and legal affairs. It is however important to give careful consideration to who you might appoint as your Attorney given the significant responsibility that a Power of Attorney creates.

An Enduring Guardianship is a legal document that enables an individual (“The Principal”) to appoint another person or persons (“The Guardian”) to make decisions about the principal’s health, lifestyle, living arrangements and personal matters if the principal becomes incapable to make those decisions themselves due to disability, injury or illness.

Special consideration should be given as to who you appoint as your Guardian as they will ultimately be the person who will make decisions for your best interest if you are unable to do so.

Each individual has the freedom to prepare a will leaving their property to whomever they wish. In doing so they may choose to ignore or may inadvertently overlook family members or other dependents.

Where a Will does not make adequate provision for eligible persons the Court may make an Order for a deceased person’s assets to be distributed in a manner different to what is provided for in their Will. This is known as a Family Provisions Claim.

A Family provisions claim must be made within 12 months from the date of the death of an individual whose Will is in dispute. The Succession Act outlines who may be eligible to bring a Family Provisions Claim and includes:

• A child of the deceased person

• A spouse or former spouse of the deceased person

• A person who was in a de facto relationship with the deceased person

• A grandchild or member of the household of the deceased person who was dependent on the deceased person

• A person who was living in a close personal relationship with the deceased person at the time of their death.