Rod Genders is a senior Australian lawyer specialising in Wills and Estate Planning, Probate and Estate Administration, Trusts and Guardianship and Inheritance Claims and Contested Estates in South Australia. His boutique specialist law firm, which was founded on 1848, is one of the oldest and most respected in Australia. Rod is an international author and speaker. Rod is the 3rd generation of Genders in the law and has been practising specialised law since the mid 80’s. For over 10 years he served on the Council of the Law Society of South Australia and is a senior member of its Succession Law Committee. For 8 years Rod was a founding committee member of the South Australian branch of the London-based Society of Trusts and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and was the founding Chair of the international STEP Digital Assets Special Interest Group. For over 25 years Rod has chaired a private committee enquiring into the affairs of protected persons. He is a member of the Law Council of Australia, a member of the Notaries Society of South Australia and an associate member of the American Bar Association.
The traditional funeral is becoming less common in Australia and the UK, with only 10% of people now wanting a religious funeral.
One in three prefer to hold a “family-only” life-celebration party rather than a large funeral. Another third do not want any ceremony at all and, for those who do, the use of pallbearers to carry coffins has dropped by 80%.
These statistics are based on a survey of funeral directors from over 500,000 funerals in the last five years and the views of 4,000 adults.
Major bank’s belated discovery of stored Wills could trigger estate disputes
It has emerged that one of the largest and oldest banks in the world – Lloyds Bank – has discovered a cache of thousands of stored Wills in its ‘Safe Custody’ service.
The service was closed to new customers in 2011, but in 2019 the bank discovered that the approximately 190,000 papers still stored there included about 9,000 Wills. Some of the envelopes could not be matched to Lloyds’ customers.
Do you have a family member that can’t be trusted to responsibly deal with money?
Maybe they are too young or too old to maturely handle a substantial inheritance. Perhaps they have mental or psychological illnesses.
Perhaps they are addicted to illicit drugs, gambling or alcohol. Or maybe they’re just a fool with money, and are too impulsive to ever save or stick to a budget.
Approximately 10 per cent of older Australians are victims of financial or psychological abuse each year, typically from family and friends pressuring them to provide financially for others.
Many elderly parents do not report their concerns, out of a sense of family loyalty, or feelings of guilt, shame or embarrassment.
As we get older, we tend to be more trusting – particularly of those we have known for a long time.
The thought of creating an estate plan can at first appear intimidating, but if you break down the process into smaller pieces, it will make it more manageable. By taking it step by step, it’s more likely that you’ll be comfortable getting started with the process.
Deciding what goes into an estate plan that fits your life and accomplishes your goals should be done with the help of a lawyer who specialises in estate planning.
The newsfeeds are full of horrific stories about residents in nursing homes being mistreated, ignored, threatened, assaulted and abused.
Another Royal Commission is taking evidence around Australia. Between 6 per cent and 20% of elderly Australians are abused by someone they trust according to recent research.
That won’t happen in my family
Are you sure about that? Even wealthy celebrities are not immune against elder financial abuse.
Every adult Australian needs a Will, but this often gets overlooked. Confronting our own mortality and making an estate plan makes some people uncomfortable.
There’s no law that says you must have an estate plan—but there are laws in every State and Territory in Australia that determine how your property is distributed if you don’t have a Will.
So, are you happy to let the Government decide who gets your assets?
When you can’t make important decisions for yourself regarding accommodation, lifestyle, health or medical treatment, an Advance Care Directive is the shining beacon that guides your family and doctors in the right direction.
The Components of an Advance Care Directive
An Advance Care Directive (ACD) is a legally-binding document that directs how you would like to be treated if you cannot express your wishes, and is made up of three parts:
The last time Australia had a federal Labor Government, they commissioned a review of Australia’s tax system, and an inheritance tax was one of the key recommendations.
On 15 October 2009 the most senior tax-policy advisor to the Australian Federal Government, Dr Ken Henry (Chair – Australia’s Future Tax System Review Panel and Secretary to the Treasury) gave an Address to the Committee for Economic Development of Australia.
In that address he identified 6 areas of future opportunities and challenges governments will need to address in respect to taxation. At the very top of his list was: “the ageing of the population, posing challenges for the financing of retirement incomes and of increasing health and aged care needs”.
Coping with the death of a parent is challenging enough, and selling their home can be an added stress for children.
Grieving family members may be unable to make decisions. Unless someone takes charge, the home might fall into disrepair.
Siblings may also have emotional attachments to it or unrealistic expectations about the value of the home.
It’s all made even worse, if the parent dies without a Will.
