Page 2 - Guide-To-Making-Your-Will

Your will should reflect your wishes and yours alone.

Many wills follow a fairly standard path with the whole property of the deceased going to their spouse in the
first instance and to the children should the spouse have died first. However there is no compulsion on
anyone to follow that pattern. The most effective wills show care and thought for loved ones. However as
well as care and thought some practical considerations should be brought into account. Here are some tips
to help your thinking.

TIP1 CHOOSETHE EXECUTORS YOU WOULD WANT.

The executors are key people after the death – they attend to all the business involved in winding up the
estate. That can be a stressful business for some but also it is quite an intimate process. You should choose
the person or persons you trust most, and you think will do the best job. Always choose more than one
executor so if one dies before you the other will be available. Our firm offers a “back up” whereby you may
appoint a partner (at no charge) to do the job if your named executors cannot.

TIP 2 TAKE PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS INTO ACCOUNT.

It generally does not make sense to appoint as your executors folk much older than you who are likely to die
before you. By the same token appointing someone likely to be under the age of 18 at the death is not in
our view a sensible choice. Also it does not usually make much sense to appoint someone who lives far away
and would find it difficult to do the day to day work involved. So that long lost son in Australia might not be
the best choice.

TIP 3 COMMUNICATE WITH THE EXECUTORS

Nobody is compelled to take on the role of executor – even if you appoint them in the will. So speak to your
chosen executors and make sure they are comfortable with the appointment and will do the job. They don’t
need prior to the death to know what is in the will – but it is reassuring to know they will do the job.

TIP4 EXECUTORS AND BENEFICIARIES CAN BE THE SAME PEOPLE

Just because someone is an executor that does not mean that they cannot inherit property under the will. In
fact the most commonly appointed executors are surviving spouses and they are the most common
beneficiaries as well.

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