A recent case considered by the Queensland Supreme Court Williams v Williams & Anor [2023] QSC 90 has highlighted the importance of taking all of the required steps to ensure a binding death benefit nomination is valid and capable of giving a legally binding direction to the trustee of a superannuation fund for the payment of death benefits following the demise of a superannuation fund member.
Who you want to take care of your financial, personal, and medical affairs if you were to lose capacity by way of Enduring Powers of Attorney (financial and personal) and Medical Treatment Decision Makers?
When a person dies leaving assets in Victoria, somebody, usually the executor of the deceased person’s Will, has to deal with the administration of the estate. Administering the estate means following the legal processes to distribute the estate as the Will-maker wanted.
Testamentary capacity is a gauge of the mental faculties of a testator when they create their will. A testator must be of competent mind, understanding, and memory in order to make a valid will.
It is often that that a marriage or a divorce automatically revokes a will. Is it so? Marriage Section 13 of the current Victorian Wills legislation deals with the effect of marriage on a will. Marriage revokes a will unless the will was made in contemplation of that particular marriage. The contemplation need not be expressed in the will, but it will generally be easier to establish if it is.
Many Australians are risking their wealth, considering somewhere between 25 and 40 per cent of people die intestate, without a Will in place.
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