5 Common Estate Planning Mistakes

Estate Planning Disasters of the Rich and Famous

Estate Planning, Inheritance Claims & Contested Estates, Wills, Wills and Estate Planning
Estate Planning Disasters of the Rich and Famous

There is a tempting assumption that estate planning is something only the wealthy need to worry about, or conversely, that wealth itself ensures a smooth transfer of assets on death. Celebrity estate planning disasters emphatically disprove both propositions. The rich and famous are as capable of catastrophic estate planning failures as anyone else – and because their assets and family disputes tend to be played out in public, their mistakes offer instructive lessons for us all.
The following cases illustrate common estate planning failures and the principles that might have prevented them. All information in this article relates to Australian law under the Succession Act 2023 (SA) and its Commonwealth and common law equivalents.

Blended family estate planning in South Australia — protecting partners and children from prior relationships

Blended Families and Estate Planning: Navigating the Competing Loyalties of Modern Life

Blended Families, Wills, Wills and Estate Planning

Australia’s rates of relationship breakdown and re-partnering mean that blended family structures — where one or both partners bring children from a prior relationship into a new household — are now a common feature of Australian life. Estate planning in a blended family is one of the most complex and emotionally charged challenges in succession…

laugh at a lawyer and the world laughs with you

Laugh (at a lawyer) and the world laughs with you

Wills and Estate Planning

laugh at a lawyer and the world laughs with you In this age of political correctness, it seems that humour is a dangerous occupation. Each joke must be carefully scrutinised for potential offence to some minority group, and then sanitised of any disrespect to anyone whose delicate sensibilities might be burdened with the weight of somebody laughing at their expense.

Social media seems filled with humourless people who aren’t happy unless they are fired-up and ranting against somebody for some perceived slight or ‘tone-deaf’ comment.

As a result, what used to pass for harmless fun is now seen as social activism. Everyone must be a ‘role-model’ at all times, and everything is a ‘learning-moment’.

what does an executor do

What does an Executor do?

Executor
what does an executor do

Social media and mainstream news outlets are filled with reports about disputes in deceased estates. There has been a big increase in the numbers of these actions in recent years. Often they relate to criticism of how an Executor has administered a deceased estate.

In most cases, a trusted family member or friend is appointed as an Executor. So, what are they doing wrong? Sometimes it isn’t easy to stay on the right side of the law when acting as an Executor.

know somebody who is losing control of their own affairs

Know somebody who is losing control of their own affairs?

Estate Planning, Wills, Wills and Estate Planning
know somebody who is losing control of their own affairs

You’re not alone. Every Australian family will be affected by dementia. As we get older, we need to have in place some important legal documents to protect ourselves, our family and our assets. If you wait too long, it could be too late.

In 2021 dementia affects almost 50 million people worldwide, which is predicted to increase to 131.5 million people by 2050.

Every three seconds another person somewhere in the world develops dementia.

Co Vid Vax Vex

Co Vid Vax Vex

COVID-19
Co Vid Vax Vex

Australia has committed to a national COVID vaccination program – described as the largest peacetime operation in Australia.

Australia’s federal industrial relations minister Christian Porter has reportedly told employers the government will not mandate vaccines in workplaces.

That means making the legality of workplace vaccination policies more “black-and-white” will need to come from the state and territory governments, using their regulatory powers under their work health and safety acts.

7 myths about powers of attorney

7 Myths About Powers of Attorney

Powers of Attorney
7 myths about powers of attorney

By signing a Power of Attorney you do NOT lose control over your affairs while you are able to manage them.

As long as you retain your capacity, you can always vary or revoke your own power of attorney, and you can place limitations on your agent which vary according to your requirements.

Most people execute an unrestricted Enduring Power of Attorney.

errors i have seen in diy wills

Errors I have seen in DIY Wills (just in the last 6 months!)

DIY Wills
errors i have seen in diy wills

I’ve been trying to educate people for years that trying to DIY the most important legal document in your life is a really bad idea.

Wills and estates are specialised areas of law, and when you don’t know what you’re doing, it is very easy to make critical errors trying to do this yourself.

Any mistakes you make won’t become apparent until you die, and it’s too late for you to fix them, so it will be your family who has the stress and cost of dealing with it all.

Why You Need a Will and What it Does

Why You Need a Will and What it Does

Wills and Estate Planning
Why You Need a Will and What it Does

Your ‘Will’ is a legal document that tells the world what you want to happen to your estate after you’re gone.

Your ‘estate’ is everything you own or control. It can include real estate, bank accounts, investments, shares, insurances, superannuation, vehicles, personal possessions and all manner of other assets.

It can also include intangible assets like goodwill, royalties, intellectual property and various legal rights.