Trusts and Wills

See us first when you are thinking about making a Will, establishing a family trust, or think you may meed an Eduring Power of Attorney or advice on administering an estate.

• Estate Administration

  • When a close relative dies it can be a burden sorting out the paper work to transfer or dispose of their personal assets in accordance with their will.  

    Our Estate Administration Team can work with you to ensure that all matters are dealt with professionally. 

• Wills

  • We can work with you whether you want to make a Will for the first time or review or update an existing Will. One of the most important ways to protect your assets is to have an up-to-date and effective Will. Your Will should be reviewed every five years, or when your marital status changes (i.e.  if you marry, separate or divorce, enter into a civil union or new relationship, or are widowed), you have children, you inherit assets, or your personal circumstances change significantly in some other way.

    Some of the things you need to consider when making a Will are best answered by completing one of our questionnaires.  This will show you what you need to look at.  Feel free to download one of our forms, complete this and call to make an appointment to discuss preparation of your Will.

    Short questionnaire
    Long questionnaire

• Trusts

  • Trusts are becoming an increasingly popular way of protecting property and managing assets.  A trust may also have some tax benefits for you.

    A trust is created when a person, called the settlor, transfers property to people known as trustees.  Trustees are obliged by law to use the property for purposes that the settlor specifies.  Usually, one of these purposes is to make payments from the trust property to people called beneficiaries.

    The parties who will benefit from the trust and the way in which the property is to be dealt with is usually set out in a document known as the trust deed.  Trusts can also be created by Wills.

    The proper preparation of trust deeds and other trust documents is essential and requires an experienced lawyer.  Our experts are available to assist and guide you through the process.

    For our clients we have a trust booklet available To Trust or Not to Trust: a practical guide on family trusts.  For your free copy contact us.