Many people I chat to view preparing their will as something they need to do but haven’t gotten around to yet. For people living in rural Australia, their ability to prepare a will is also hampered by distance to lawyers or having no time to leave the farm, or work, for the hours it would take to get to a lawyer’s office.
Even if you have prepared a will in the past, there are many occasions that mean you may need to review and potentially update it.
Some of these instances include:
- Marriage or divorce:
- Marriage or divorce after a will has been prepared automatically revokes an old will (unless the will was made in contemplation of the marriage/divorce).
- Even if you are not getting married, a new relationship is usually a good reason to review your wishes.
- New children or grandchildren:
- Did you prepare your will before the birth or adoption of your children? Have you prepared one and your minor children are now all adults? If you haven’t previously considered who will care for your minor children in the event of your death, you need to.
- New grandchildren may prompt you to reconsider gifts or provisions for the next generation.
- Changes to your assets:
- Buying or selling property, particularly farming land may change provisions in your will, especially if the property itself was specifically identified as a gift.
- Changes to business interests, companies or trusts, or receiving an inheritance are another reason to update your will, to make sure the next generation is properly appointed if they need to carry on the business after your death.
- Farming succession:
- If the next generation has joined the farm, and only one child is farming while others have different interests, it is important to start considering what your succession plan is.
- Consider whether dividing the estate equally is practical or fair. Remember, equality is not necessarily equity.
- Changes to beneficiaries or executors:
- If someone you named in your previous will has died, or other relationships have changed it may be worthwhile updating your will.
- Further, an executor you appointed 10 years ago may not be appropriate for you now.
- Legislative Changes:
- Has the law changed since you last looked at your Will? It may be worthwhile considering meeting to understand if there will be any implications you haven’t already thought of.
Even a quick review of the Will you drafted some years ago is a good idea. If you’ve got an old one in a dusty filing cabinet somewhere, go have a read of it now and make sure it will hold up in the event that you were to die tomorrow. If it won’t, best to update it to make sure your wishes are followed!
This article is general information and is not legal advice. Please contact Giants Legal for advice about your circumstances.
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