Will Writing Lawyers Sydney & NSW

Why we should draft your Will:

• Leaving no Will or a poorly drafted Will can be costly to your estate and beneficiaries.

• Leaving uncertainty as to how you wish your estate to be distributed creates potential for disharmony between beneficiaries. Litigating a disputed Will before the Court could result in extensive legal costs.

• We will consult with your accountant or tax adviser, as well as your financial planner too, if necessary.

Szabo & Associates Solicitors offers a comprehensive service drafting Wills and Estate Planning. Circumstances change; therefore, we offer a regular review service to help you ensure your Will is kept accurate and up-to-date.

Many people attempt to write their own Will. However, we feel writing your own will is a mistake. While it may seem easy enough to write down what you have and where you want it to go after you die, the law concerning Wills is quite complex.

If you make your own Will there is a risk you will not draw it up correctly – rendering it invalid. This would mean that your estate is not distributed as you would wish it to be.

Further, you may not express your intentions clearly enough or not realise some of the nuances of the law that would require you to write your Will in a certain way. Again, this could mean that your assets are not distributed as you would have wished them to be.

In addition, a solicitor is best placed to advise you on how to avoid creating tax liabilities that your loved ones will need to pay out of your estate. Your solicitor can help you carry out effective tax planning to ensure you do not leave your beneficiaries open to paying more tax than they would need to.

In addition, home-made Wills are more likely to be contested – given that they are not ‘water tight’ the way they would be if drafted by an expert solicitor. Where a Will is contested, the process of distributing your assets will go to court, which could cost a lot of money and end up being distributed in an entirely different way from that which you intended.

Finally, a DIY will is more likely to be contested, which means the whole process of giving away your assets could end up in court.

For these reasons it is important that your Will is drafted by someone who understands the law relating to Wills. An expert solicitor can advise you properly on the best way to ensure your assets end up where you want them to.

At Szabo & Associates Solicitors, whether you want to limit the chances of your Will being interfered with or make sure your assets are distributed the way you want, we can help. We have vast experience helping people make, contest and update Wills in New South Wales. To get in touch, please call us on (02) 9281-5088 or click to book a consultation. Alternatively, please complete our online enquiry form which is located on the right-hand side of this page. We look forward to hearing from you.

• Have your circumstances changed recently (divorced, widowed, re-married, married, bankrupt, inheritance)?

• Are you comfortable with the executor you have chosen? Has he or she agreed to take on the role?

• Have you obtained all the information required about contact details of all beneficiaries?

• Have you checked with your superannuation fund who is named as your beneficiary?

• Have you told your executor where the original copy of your will is located?

• Do you have a list of all your important papers and their location?

• Do you have a clear understanding of the financial resources and liabilities of your estate?

• Do you have an Enduring Power of Attorney?

• Do you have an Appointment of Enduring Guardian?

• If necessary does your will name a guardian for your children?

• Have you initialled any minor alterations you have made to the document?

• Have you used the same pen to sign the will?

• Have you dated the will?