Wills and Powers of Attorney

A Will is a document in which a person leaves their entire wealth to nominated beneficiaries. A Power of Attorney is a document by which a person entrusts others to look after their financial affairs, make decisions about their medical treatment or where they are to live. These are critically important documents which require careful thought and preparation.

Many people believe that the preparation of a Will or a Power of Attorney is nothing more than completing a form and having it signed. This is in fact far from the truth. There are many factors which must be considered before a legally valid Will or Power of Attorney should, or even can, be prepared and executed. It involves determining who can be trusted to look after one’s affairs, will that person know what their responsibilities are, how will they cope with difficult emotional issues and unco-operative family members?

In addition to the statutory formalities, which must be complied with, careful thought should be given to such issues as;

• does the person making the Will or Power of Attorney have the necessary mental capacity or has any person applied undue influence or duress?
• have all the persons who have a claim on a will maker’s estate been included or considered? If not, what will be the consequences?
• what is the likelihood of a someone making a claim against the estate after the will maker’s death?
• what type of Power of Attorney do I need? There are General Powers of Attorney, Enduring Powers of Attorney (Financial), Enduring Powers of Attorney (Medical Treatment) and Enduring Powers of Guardianship,
• the choice of executors of a Will. Who is suitable?
• the creation of testamentary trusts which can be of great financial benefit to the beneficiaries’ children,
• the guardianship of any under age children,
• the need for an a guardian or administrator to be appointed,
• medical evidence of mental capacity

and many other important questions.

For security and peace of mind, Lukaitis Partners offers a FREE and SECURE deeds (Wills, Powers of Attorney, Certificates of Title and other important legal documents) retention service. We look after over 1,000 clients’ deeds in our fire resistant and secure deeds cabinet. So there is no need to lodge your important legal documents with a bank and pay for this service.

Over the years, Lukaitis Partners has built up considerable experience and expertise in advising clients on these difficult and often sensitive family issues. Sensible forward planning with the right advice will not only place one’s mind at ease, but will also avoid unnecessary costs and stressful disputes later.