A Will allows you to record how you want your estate dealt with after your death and who you want to be responsible for administering it.
Your Will can do more than identify who receives your estate. Depending on your circumstances, it can also record your wishes about the care of young children, provide for how an inheritance is managed, and deal with specific gifts or particular assets.
Making a Will also gives you an opportunity to consider whether everything you want to plan for will actually be dealt with by your Will. Assets such as superannuation, jointly owned property and interests in trusts or companies may need to be considered separately as part of your broader estate plan.
Questions about making a Will
What should I include in my Will?
Your Will should set out who you want to administer your estate and who you want to receive your estate after your death. You may also want to leave particular gifts to specific people or organisations.
Depending on your circumstances, your Will can also address matters such as your wishes for the care of young children and how an inheritance is to be held or managed for a beneficiary.
What should be included will depend on your family, your assets and what you want to achieve. It is also important to consider whether there are assets or arrangements, such as superannuation or jointly owned property, that may not be dealt with by your Will.
What happens if I die without a Will?
If you die without a valid Will, you are said to have died intestate. Queensland law then determines who is entitled to receive your estate.
Who receives your estate will depend on your family circumstances, and the result may be different from what you would have chosen yourself. Administering an estate without a Will can also involve additional legal steps, time and expense for the people left to deal with your affairs.
Having a valid Will in place can make the administration of your estate more straightforward for the people you leave behind.
What does an executor do and who should I appoint?
Your executor is responsible for administering your estate after your death. This can involve identifying and collecting your assets, dealing with debts and expenses, obtaining probate where required and ultimately distributing your estate.
When choosing an executor, consider someone you trust who is willing and able to take on the role. You should also think about their age, circumstances and relationship with the people who may be involved in your estate. You can appoint more than one executor if that is appropriate for you.
What happens if my children are under 18 when I die?
Your Will can record your wishes about who you would like to care for your children if you die while they are young. The circumstances at the time will ultimately be relevant to who has parental responsibility for a child, so a Will cannot simply determine that issue regardless of the circumstances.
Your Will can also provide for your children’s inheritance to be held and managed for them while they are young. You can consider when and how they should receive their inheritance rather than simply focusing on who will receive it.
What if a beneficiary needs additional support?
Some beneficiaries may need additional consideration when you are deciding how to leave an inheritance. This might be because of their age, disability, vulnerability, ability to manage money or other personal circumstances.
Rather than simply leaving an inheritance directly to a beneficiary, there may be different ways to provide for them and manage the inheritance. The appropriate arrangement will depend on the beneficiary’s circumstances and what you want to achieve.
What happens if I have estranged family members?
Being estranged from a family member does not necessarily mean they will have no rights in relation to your estate.
If you intend to exclude someone from your Will, or provide for them differently because of the nature of your relationship, it is important to consider the circumstances carefully when making your Will. Certain eligible people may be able to make a claim against an estate if adequate provision has not been made for them.
Can I include digital assets in my Will?
Digital assets are increasingly part of people’s estates and may need to be considered when making a Will. They can include things such as digital photographs and files, websites, online accounts, cryptocurrency and other electronically held assets.
Not every digital asset can simply be gifted under a Will. Ownership, access rights and the terms applying to a particular account or service can all be relevant. It is worth considering what digital assets you have and how you would like them dealt with as part of your estate planning.
What happens to my debts when I die?
Your debts do not automatically disappear when you die. They are generally paid from the money and property in your estate before the remaining estate is distributed to your beneficiaries.
Your executor is responsible for identifying and dealing with your debts as part of administering your estate. What happens with a particular debt can depend on whether it is secured or unsecured and whether you were solely or jointly responsible for it.
If your debts exceed your assets, your estate may be insolvent. An executor should obtain legal advice before dealing with an estate if there is any possibility it may be insolvent.
Your executor and beneficiaries are not generally personally responsible for paying your debts simply because they are the executor or a beneficiary. There are also circumstances in which particular assets may not be available to meet the debts of your estate.
When should I update my Will?
Your Will should reflect your current circumstances and what you want to happen when you die. It is a good idea to review it after important life changes, such as marriage, separation or divorce, the birth of children or grandchildren, a significant change in your assets, or if the circumstances of an executor or beneficiary have changed.
Some life events can also affect your existing Will, so it is worth obtaining advice rather than assuming it still achieves what you intend.
You do not necessarily need to change your Will every time something in your life changes. A review allows you to check that it still does what you want it to do.
How should I store my Will?
Your original signed Will should be kept somewhere secure where it can be located after your death. It is important that your executor or someone you trust knows where the original is held.
A copy is useful for your records, but the original Will can be important when your estate is administered. If the original cannot be located after your death, additional legal issues may arise even if a copy exists.
We can arrange secure storage of your original Will after it is signed and provide you with a copy for your records. You should let your executor or someone you trust know that we have arranged for the secure storage of your original Will.
How we can help
Making a Will starts with understanding your family, your assets and what you want to happen after your death.
We will talk through your circumstances, explain the issues that are relevant to you and prepare a Will that reflects your instructions. We will also consider whether there are matters outside your Will, such as superannuation or jointly owned assets, that should be considered as part of your broader estate planning.
If you already have a Will, we can review it with you and advise whether any changes are needed.