What is a blended family? A ‘blended’ family can take many different forms. Typically it might be where a testator (the will maker) has children to a first marriage or partnership, that relationship ends, and he or she enters into a relationship with a new partner, oftentimes still with younger children. Sometimes, making the […]
Read MoreDo I need a discretionary family trust? What is a family trust? A family trust is a discretionary trust set up to hold the assets of a family or to run a family business. No two discretionary family trusts are the same, yet there are two overarching benefits in establishing and administering any family trust. […]
Read MoreYou can contest a will if you believe its terms do not treat you fairly. Perhaps you have not received what you believe to be a fair share of the deceased person’s estate or you have been completely omitted from the will. Although the deceased person may have purposely left you with this share or […]
Read MoreA testamentary discretionary trust (TDT) is a special type of trust created within your will. The TDT is different from a typical simple will. In a typical simple will the bequests or gifts of the will are given directly to the beneficiaries (subject to any delay until the age set out in the will if the beneficiaries […]
Read MoreWhile the intention of the testator might likely have been to include any foreign assets in describing their ‘estate’ in their will, the law of that foreign jurisdiction might mean that those foreign assets aren’t easily dealt with. For example, if the Australian will doesn’t conform to the requirements of the foreign jurisdiction it may be not […]
Read MoreThe term “living will” is a colloquial term to describe a document which gives directions about how you wish your end of life to be managed. Rather than creating an advanced care directive (which is generally quite detailed and specific and done with your GP or specialist doctor), it is not uncommon to include certain clauses […]
Read MoreI want to leave a bequest to a husband and wife together, is the gift as joint tenants or tenants in common? The common law position, as expressed in Re Lysaght (1987) 48 SASR 457, is that unless words of “severance” are present the relevant persons will take as joint tenants. Words of severance include […]
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