Auckland Trust and Estate Lawyer – What They Can Do

Many people do not like to address the topic of their death and as a result, fail to prepare their estate for their passing. This is a big mistake for their family, friends, and communities that they enjoy. Without even basic planning, a person’s estate can be subject to lengthy and expensive legal work. This is how an Auckland trust and estate lawyer can help.

 

What Work Does An Auckland Trust And Estate Lawyer Cover?

An Auckland trust and estate lawyer will work on a variety of legal vehicles and document. These include trusts, wills, estate administration, relationship property considerations, enduring powers of attorney and succession planning. This is a technical legal area and requires careful explanation by the lawyer so that their clients understand the implications of their action.  The lawyer needs to provide clear, practical advice so that the client’s circumstances, priorities, and long-term objectives can be achieved.

 

Trusts

Trusts are a big part of their work. Many people have heard of a family trust but not fully understand what it means. There are also other forms of trust which a smart lawyer can advise on.

 

Establishing a family trust is not difficult but is onerous about the paperwork involved. People often think that a family trust is a good way to protect their assets, which is true. However, they do not always understand the obligations of transferring assets into the trust.

 

For this article we will simply look at the work required to establish a trust, rather than a deeper look into the requirements once the entity is established.

 

The lawyer will prepare the trust deed, appoint trustees, and record the assets at current market value placed into the trust. Later, they can also help trustees with their obligations such as record keeping, account preparation, communicating the trust’s beneficiaries. It is often a good idea to have your lawyer as a trustee so that they can carry out the required trust administration.

 

Estate Planning

Estate planning is another key aspect of the role of an Auckland trust lawyer. This involves preparing or updating a will so that a person’s assets are distributed in accordance with their desires. In many cases this will involve appointing executors, and then writing the will so that children or other dependants can be taken care of and making specific gifts to local communities or charities. In short, the will states how business, savings, superannuation, and business interests should be treated after the person passes on.

 

Often the lawyer’s estate planning work will cross over with family trust matters, jointly owned assets, insurance policies and other investment vehicles. It is important to have a regular review, especially after major life events such as marriage, separation, the birth of a child, a significant change in financial circumstances or the death of a beneficiary.

 

Estate Administration

In short, this work is the handling of the estate after a person has died. The responsibility lies with the executor, but the lawyer can advise or even be assigned that role in the will.

 

Estate admin involves identifying and valuing assets, communicating with beneficiaries, settling any debts, paying outstanding taxes, closing accounts, responding to issues raised by beneficiaries, and finally, distributing the estate in accordance with the instructions laid out in the will.

 

Gaining access to information can be difficult due to privacy laws, so having a lawyer helping can make a big difference.

 

Estate Disputes and Litigation

It is surprising how many estates are disputed. Aggrieved relatives left out of the will are the most common, however others arise with blended families. For example, what happens to a spouse’s children from a previous relationship? Are they entitled to a share of the assets? This can get very complicated and expensive.

 

Summing Up An Auckland Trust and Estate Lawyer’s Role

Given that a person has worked long and hard to grow their estate, it is important that their wishes are met after they have passed on. If there is no will, or if it has not been updated, the subject’s wishes may not be met, legally.

 

We have also seen that disputes can arise if the implications of the will are not thought through. An individual is unlikely to have the knowledge or experience to do this. However, an Auckland trust and estate lawyer, will have worked on many similar situations. Their advice will be invaluable.

 

If you do not have a will, yours has not been reviewed for a while, or your circumstances might have changed such as getting remarried, it will be worth your time to talk to an Auckland trust and estate lawyer such as McVeagh Fleming. They are conveniently situated in the heart of the CBD. Click for more details.