When most people think about estate planning, they think about property, bank accounts, superannuation, and personal possessions. Few think about their email inbox, their cryptocurrency wallet, their Netflix subscription, or the thirty thousand photographs stored on a cloud service. Yet for many Australians in 2026, the digital estate is substantial — and it is almost entirely unplanned for.
For a business owner, the question ‘what happens to my estate when I die?’ is inseparable from the question ‘what happens to my business?’ The death of a business owner without a succession plan can destroy value that has been built over decades, trigger crippling disputes among partners or shareholders, leave employees without direction, and saddle the surviving family with an asset they cannot manage, cannot sell, and cannot afford to run.
Business succession planning is the process of ensuring that your business has a clear, documented path forward in the event of your death or incapacity — and that your estate plan is properly integrated with that path.
Baby Boomers were born between 1945 and 1965. As a segment of Australian society we represent a BIG chunk of our national population, and account for a massive percentage of the nation’s private net-worth.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics people aged 65 years and over made up 13% of Australia’s population at 30 June 2007. This proportion is projected to increase to 25% in 2056 and to 28% in 2101.
As we prepare to transition into retirement & beyond, we are about to witness the greatest transfer of wealth ever in Australia’s history.
However 2010 Australian research commissioned by the Salvation Army from Roy Morgan Research reveals that nearly two thirds of the adult Australian population does not have a Will. The research also shows 40% of Australians aged 25+ have experienced or know someone who has experienced family conflict as a result of a family member not leaving a Will.
Dying without any Will is called intestacy. When that happens, the government of the State where you die will determine what will happen to your assets. This can lead to unintended people (or even the government) gaining ownership of your hard-earned assets.
Many Australians have no idea what happens to their assets after they die, and sadly many rely on the misguided notion that a Do it Yourself Will is sufficient to protect their family and assets.
Discretionary trusts (often called family trusts) are very powerful planning tools you can use for all kinds of purposes. Trusts can simplify & minimise or even avoid probate, protect your beneficiaries from creditors or divorcing spouses and
can provide for education for grandchildren or your favourite charities.
When a trust is part of your overall comprehensive estate plan, you should try to avoid these common trust mistakes:
If you have not put your assets into your trust, also called “funding” your trust, you have lost some of the benefits of your trust.
Any assets that are in your own name at the time of your death will probably need to be probated. However, any assets that are titled in the name of your trust at the time of your death will avoid probate and usually result in lower after-death administration costs.
In order to receive the protection and benefits capable of being provided by the trust, generally (except for superannuation funds and certain annuities) most of your assets would need to be transferred into your trust during your lifetime.
#1. Benefits of a corporate trustee
Corporate trustees are companies created to manage a trust on behalf of the beneficiaries.
The assets of the trust must be registered in the name of the company.
You may opt for a corporate trustee to manage your family trust because it offers more flexibility for estate planning, tax benefits and limited liability.
When people make their Will, they typically concentrate on their personal assets, and they sometimes forget about their business assets & responsibilities.
If you are a director of an Australian company, then you need to know that you have responsibilities relating to that company, which can include:
Personal liability of directors for unpaid company taxes;
Personal liability of directors for unpaid company superannuation;
As our lives increasingly move to online digital platforms, it is becoming more important to help your executor access your “digital assets” after you die.
Digital assets include social media accounts, shopping accounts, bank or investment account details, entertainment collections, gambling accounts, and the like.
In 2020 the NSW Law Reform Commission released its report*, which found that 92% of people do not include details with their Will.
In our digital‑first world, where Google has replaced the telephone directory and business cards have been supplanted by LinkedIn, our online digital profiles are the first impression we give to the world and the primary source of information that others will use to research us.
Our digital profile plays a huge role in both online and offline reputation, privacy and security management.
We need to focus on our digital profiles through the lens of our true audience, whether that be family members, prospective employers.
Even as the pandemic winds down, it continues to influence where and how we work, with more time spent online, you and your digital credentials are at risk now more than ever.
The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the home lives and workplaces of millions worldwide. Offices closed, people transitioned to working remotely and shopping online, and families bunkered-down at home.
With nowhere to go, they spent more time online. That isn’t likely to change anytime soon, even if some offices re-open.
In October 2022 (which ironically was ‘cybersecurity awareness month’), Australia experienced several major cybersecurity breaches (“hacks”), including Medibank and its subsidiary AHM, Optus, Woolworths and electricity provider Energy Australia.
Many other Australian and foreign companies – large and small – are all now among the household names that have fallen victim to a data breach.