Full Focus Limited
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David Martin: 0274 902 401
Kathy Martin: 027 2800 564
Recent Focus November 2007
Estimated reading time for this issue: under 5 minutes
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Wills, Trusts and other boring (but vital) stuff
Don’t click “delete” just because this sounds a bit dreary ...
It'll only take you a few minutes to read and could save you or your family some serious anguish.
We often come across situations where some very well laid plans (ie. documentation such as wills and trusts) have become unstuck and no longer do much of anything. Or worse still, they actually do what you DON’T want them to do; detrimental to your purposes and sometimes can even have disastrous consequences if left unchecked. Don’t fall into this trap!
If you’ve gone to the bother of putting these structures and documents in place to
begin with, don’t let them gather dust and mould! Pull them out and brush them off regularly! Times changes, circumstances change, and so must your structures change and adapt to those circumstances.
This is no more true than when you have significant changes in your life - such as a marriage, a divorce, children. Even if nothing’s changed in your life for years, it’s still vital to review your structures regularly.
We recently did this ourselves, even though the status quo has remained for the last ….. years (not telling!). We only made a few minor changes to our wills – but it 
was still worthwhile. Even if you have no changes – you can tick it off your list as still doing the right job when it’s needed – it’s all peace of mind and one less thing to niggle away at the back of your head.
Here’s a few things to think about when you review your will:
- If you’ve got children, don’t forget to appoint a guardian. If you’ve already got one appointed – is this still the person you want looking after the welfare and wellbeing of your children?
- Are you an organ donor or not?
- Who’s your trustee (or trustees)? Is it someone you trust and know
personally, and someone who knows you well enough to understand your ethics and wishes; or do you have an independent trustee – someone who doesn’t know you … a person who could change randomly over the years to come until the person who actually ends up looking after your estate doesn’t even know if you like pizza let alone how you’d like your estate to be
handled. Now that’s worth thinking about isn’t it? - Have you specified whether you want to be buried or burnt? What kind of ceremony and would you like your ashes scattered anywhere in particular?
- Any specific bequests?
- If you’ve got a trust, don’t forget to appoint the person who will have the power to appoint Trustees for your Trust … this one often gets missed out!
And lastly … for those of you who don’t have a will – get one.
Everyone should have a will. If you think this doesn’t apply to you, you better check out the laws of intestacy (what happens if you die without a will). And by the way, if you’ve got a will but you’ve got married since, then your will is null and void – you don’t have one!
What’s going to happen if you’re still alive but are non compos mentis???
No one wants to be in this position. But it can and does happen – an accident or illness that puts you in a coma; being on life support; a disease such as Alzheimers ……. (All very morbid thoughts to contemplate, but nevertheless there should be some plan in place for just such an event.)
You’re not dead, so your will doesn’t come into effect.
But who’s going to decide what’s the best thing for your welfare, and your affairs 
/assets? Good question isn’t it? For this reason it is vital to have an Enduring Power of Attorney that covers both your property and personal care and welfare. If there does come a time when you can no longer make a decision for yourself , who will make it for you ?? Choose your Attorney wisely!
Power of Attorneys also need to be regularly reviewed – it’s a great idea to do this at the same time as you review your will. You may, for example, have your spouse as your Attorney, or a sibling. But if you have children then as they grow older they may be more appropriately named as your Attorney.
Trusts are another legal document that should be reviewed
regularly.
You’d be astounded how many times we come across trusts that no longer do the job they were set up to do. For some reason, trusts seem less likely to be reviewed that other stuff like wills etc. Don’t fall into this trap. Make sure your trust still works for you, check that it still does exactly what you want it to do.
Sometimes it’s not the content of the Trust that’s the problem – it’s the documentation systems. The procedures have either not been put in place originally, or have fallen by the way side. We often come across trusts where the paper trail is completely inadequate, and often non-existent. Once you’ve got your Trust in place you must make sure you follow your rulebook as far as documentation is concerned.
The benefit of properly designed and administered legal structures is not to be taken lightly.
If you do it right the first time, and keep it right, they can guarantee -
- You and your family are not left as "hostages to fate"
- The security of your family home
- Your assets are protected during your lifetime
- Your assets are transferred to your ultimate beneficiaries
- A continuing standard of living to meet your family's requirement
- To eliminate family turmoil and disputes
- To minimise the destructive effect of taxes, and unnecessary expenditure such as penalties, duties and probate costs
- Educational opportunities for your most precious asset - your children
- A structure of support for your spouse, children and other people you care about.
And who wouldn’t want that?
Remember, review your legal documents (will, trust(s), power of attorneys) regularly.
Make sure they'll stand up and do the job you want them to when they're needed. Make sure they are kept somewhere safe, and make sure someone else knows where they are!
We have more information on this topic, and on how to plan your business and personal structures.
Do you know someone we might be able to assist? Please give them our contact details, refer them to our website, or provide us with details so we can contact them. Click here to see how we’ll handle your referrals
Read the previous issue of Recent Focus (What would it be like if you had enough time to do everything you wanted to do?)
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