When a person reaches 18 years of age they are legally an adult and no longer a minor under the guardianship of their parents. So what you ask? Well the problem is that parents and these new adults generally do not recognise they need to take steps to protect themselves in case of death or accident or medical condition, as their parent/s can no longer just step in and legally act for their children. The general perception appears to be that you only need these when you get older.

Without a Will and or an Enduring Power of Attorney the Government agency, generally the Public Trustee and or the Adult Guardian steps in and makes all the financial and medical decisions regardless of what the person or family may have actually wanted.

Distribution from and estate where there was no valid Will, is subject to the laws of succession and probably not what the deceased would have wished, often the wife or partner is incurred great expense obtaining letters of administration and then may have to share the estate with others family members. Succession information ex the Public Trustee click here.

Remember, at your death family and friends will be trying to cope with the loss of a loved family member or friend, do not add to their distress and confusion by not having a will which clearly specifies your wishes.

Think of a Will and Enduring Power of Attorney as low cost insurance, but better as you do not have to keep paying the premium each and every year.
 
Making a Will means security for those you love and may save unnecessary distress and hardship and assist give closure. It is the only way to be certain a lifetime's work and assets are passed on to the people you choose. You may name guardians for your under age children and make arrangements for their maintenance and education.

To obtain a form to provide the information required for your Will/s and Enduring Power of Attorney/s click on the arrow, then open this in a word processor to input details, or click on this arrow to print the form, then enter details and froward the completed form to us by post, fax or email.

You should check your Will and Enduring Power of Attorney at least every five years to ensure that they are still current and reflect your wishes and provide the lifestyle and security you want for your loved ones. Remember "Do not put off until tomorrow what you can do today as tomorrow may be to late".

If you make your beneficiaries, family members or friends your Executor/s, your Estate NEED NOT  be subject to heavy legal and or administration charges as those people are then able to deal with the administration of the estate instead of a Solicitor, with charges generally in excess of $350.00 per hour. Executors can engage professional people i.e. re accounting or special legal work selectively if required without having to engage them for the full process.

Original Wills and Title Deeds/Certificate of Title hard copy held by solicitors allows them to be in at the death with a good chance of getting the work of  Probate / administration of the estate or/and the conveyancing work on the sale of any property involved in the estate. The Public Trustee are basically government solicitors and may take a percentage of the estate or apply their charges at solicitor rates.

When providing your Will, we do not become your Executors or take a percentage of the estate as may the Public Trustee or charge you at solicitor rates. We do not hold the original copy of your Will as solicitors do as a means of future business, so you are free to deal with this as you wish.

If you wish to have your Will done, or already have a Will which needs updating you can use the enclosed form to provided the necessary details. Your present Will may be with the Public Trustee which may make them your Executor and entitle them to charge hefty administration fees with no control on the sale / auction of items.

You may consider it advisable to make another Will revoking the one they hold to save their hefty administration fees and charges. If required a sample letter can be supplied to notify the Public Trustees or  solicitor who may hold your present Will, advising them you have made another Will which revokes the one they hold and requesting they return same to you so that it may be destroyed to save confusion.        

The necessary information can be provided to your Executor/s with the required documents at the appropriate time to enable them to capably discharge their duties of administration of your estate, without employing solicitors who may charge over $300.00 per hour.

If it is inconvenient for you to visit, these services can be supplied to you by mail and you may send a money order or cheque in payment for these services.  A receipt is always given.  PLEASE,  supply your phone/fax  number if possible so that any necessary details can be verified.

IF YOU DO NOT MAKE A WILL, YOUR ESTATE MAY NOT GO TO THE BENEFICIARIES OF YOUR CHOICE.

YOUR WILL/s and DEED/s held by a SOLICITOR, INCREASES the VALUE of Their PRACTICE as it TENDS to ENSURE that THEY RECEIVE YOUR ESTATE WORK and CONVEYANCING, which = $$$$$$$.

 GENERAL INFORMATION

A Will is a written statement declaring how you wish your assets to be disposed of after your death. Certain legal necessities,(some of which are listed here) must be complied with and the wording of the Will must be correct or the Will may be invalid. 

A Will must appoint one or more Executors correctly to distribute the assets in the Estate and dispose of all property both real and personal. Must be signed in the presence of 2 witness who each must sign as witnesses.

Witnesses Do Not  need to know the contents of the Will.

Beneficiaries or their spouses or children should not act as a Witness, otherwise they will lose their benefit.

Any asset disposed of prior to death is not able to be claimed by a beneficiary.

A marriage voids your previous Will.  It also voids any Enduring Power of Attorney that does not appoint your new spouse as your attorney.

Divorce also cancels the ex partner from being either executor or a beneficiary.

Any Power of  Attorney ceases at death, and the Executor of the Will then takes over. An Executor must agree to act in that capacity and be over the age of eighteen years and be of sound mind. The Executor is given, in trust the duty of carrying out the provisions of the will.

Executors duties extend to where necessary, arranging the funeral if no other family member is prepared to do this, apply for Probate or Letters of Administration if applicable,  transfer real estate to beneficiaries, see to the sale and distribution of all assets, Money, Real Estate, Shares, Insurance, Superannuation, payment of debts, arrange for a tax return for the estate if necessary and finally distribute the remainder to the beneficiaries.

Executors, Trustees may engage a solicitor and or accountant when and if necessary or if they do not want to do it themselves.  The procedure is not that difficult in most instances, and we can supply information and documents which may be needed for an executor that is prepared to attend to documentation etc.

If a solicitor has the Deeds and or a Will in their care, a simple written request from the Executor is all that is needed to arrange for the recovery of the documents. The Executor/s has that right.

IT IS IMPORTANT that ALL persons who sign and Witness a Will, do so in the presence of each other and preferably use the same pen. Never staple pin or attach anything to a will as this may cause problems in being able to validate that the will is complete, or if there are attachments missing, particularly in transferring property. 

****** CAUTION ******

Be Aware that any person who could be a beneficiary under the terms of the Will should not act as a witness or they will not receive anything under the Will.

Never Amend a Will (do a new one) or Staple Pin or Paper Clip  anything to the Will or you may invalidate it.

Your original Will should be kept in a safe place. We suggest that you complete the a list of information on the form we provide and keep a COPY with your Will.

Executors are not required to use a solicitor, however they can engage a solicitor and other professional persons for specific work as required (obtain quotes).

Via our Conveyancing Kits, we can supply information and the necessary documents to allow Executors to transfer property to the Executor/s (as devisee or personal representative) for sale or to transfer directly to the beneficiaries.

Probate - Proving the Will via the Supreme Court is not usually required unless a Bank, Insurance Company or some institution which is holding over $20,000.00 insists on it, or someone is contesting the Will. Application for Probate could cost a between $800.00 to $1,500.00 doing it yourself, and much more if a solicitor is involved. We do not provide a kit for probate as all the information/manual and forms are available free from the Supreme Court Web site.  Link to -> Queensland Supreme Court
Note: In Queensland probate is not currently required for the standard process of transferring property from a deceased estate. 

The Public Trustee l, but, they charge for administration of the Estate at similar rates to Solicitors or in some instances on a percentage basis. Fees may also be levied for specific services such as valuations, tax returns and conveyancing in the estate. House and other property may be sold by the Public Trustee to pay for these services.

WARNING  When a person dies intestate, (without a Will) no provision is made for de-facto partners and any property may be sold and the Estate then distributed in accordance with the Laws of Intestate Succession. When a person dies intestate the Supreme Court may appoint an Administrator and this is usually the Public Trustee.  

INFORMATION on ENDURING POWER OF ATTORNEY,  ATTORNEYS and OPTIONS

Why do an Enduring Power of Attorney if you already have a Will?    And When?

A Will only comes into effect when you die, however an Enduring Power of Attorney is for your protection and benefit whilst you are still alive, easily more important of the two. This should be done as soon as you become 18 years of age, i.e. legally an adult no longer a minor under your parents legal guardianship and care.

It is a sad fact of life that many people become incapable of managing their financial affairs through a stroke, dementia (Alzheimer's Disease), severe accident or disease sometimes temporarily and sadly others permanently. Also many people think that a Power of Attorney is only for aged or retired persons, however when disaster strikes and they need a power of attorney, it is to late.

This raises the serious questions. Who takes responsibility for a persons property, assets, income and debts and who makes medical / health decisions when they no longer can? Answer, the Public Trustee has the power to do so BUT, do you really want the Public Trustee managing your financial affairs, and medical / health decisions for you?

Dont let this happen to you.

An Enduring Power of Attorney document signed by you as Donor, allows a person or persons (Donee/s) to sign documents and act on your behalf and do anything which you may lawfully do yourself, such as sign cheques, withdraw money from your account or make medical / health decisions when you can not etc.

This Power of Attorney must be signed by you while you are mentally capable and you can stipulate that it may not be used until a doctor declares you are unable to look after your affairs. It continues in force after you become mentally incapable.

How many Attorneys do you need? The standard form provides for up to 4 Attorneys and you should consider if you need more than one, i.e. Two or more Attorneys acting jointly may provide an additional level of security, however the more Attorneys you have acting jointly the higher the risk that they may not agree on what needs to be done. You can have Attorneys successively, i.e. if the first and or current attorney is unable to act then the next Attorney then acts for you.

There is no need to register the Power of Attorney unless your Attorney/s need to buy or sell real estate for you and sign title documents. If at some later date this need arises, then the Power of Attorney document can still be registered at that time with the Dept of Environment and Resource Management (DNRM) referred to as the Land Titles Office who upon registration (for a fee) issue a Dealing number which should be put on any contract or Transfer document and wording such as John Smith, duly appointed Attorney for Jill Brown under Registered Power of Attorney No................ etc is to be shown generally above the attorney/s signature.

Note: We do not hold your documents and do not become your Executors or Attorneys.