Wills & Estates
Need assistance with a will or an estate?
Terese Wacyk Legal understands the importance of protecting your assets and preserving those for the ones you love after you pass. We also understand how important it is to maintain financial control over your affairs in times of incapacity and in relation to your bodily autonomy, and for that reason, we always advise our clients to ensure that they not only have an up to date Will but also the protection afforded by a Power of Attorney and Advanced Care Directive.
Whether you require a Will, Power of Attorney, Advanced Care Directive or are in need of in-depth estate planning, our extensive experience in Wills and Estates enables us to provide you with the right advice for your particular situation. We will take the time to explain everything involved in plain language so that you have the right plan in place to protect your assets, reduce stress on your family and minimise the chances of future disputes which may divide your family after your passing.
Wills, Power Of Attorney & Advanced Care Directive
Will
In order to ensure you preserve your assets for the ones you love, you will need a Will. A Will is a legal document that sets out a testator’s wishes in relation to the distribution of your assets upon your passing. Did you know that without a Will, your assets may not go to the ones that you love, and in exceptional cases your assets may transfer to the State? It is really important that you have a valid Will before you pass. Otherwise, this may lead to a breakdown in family relations and potentially leaving the ones you love without an inheritance.
Power of Attorney
Did you know if you lost legal capacity (i.e. you were in a coma or suffering mental infirmity), you would no longer have control over your financial affairs? Who would make these decisions for you? A Power of Attorney is a legal document that specifically provides your authority for another to step into your shoes and take control of your financial affairs in times of need. Without this document and in the event of your subsequent legal incapacity, you may lose control over your financial affairs, which may have devastating consequences for you and your family. To avoid this uncertainty, we always advise our clients that in addition to the preparation of a Will, they should also prepare a legally binding Power of Attorney.
Advanced Care Directive
An Advanced Care Directive empowers you to make clear legal arrangements for your future health care, end of life, preferred living arrangements and other personal matters during times of medical uncertainty. It replaces the existing Enduring Power of Guardianship, Medical Power of Attorney and Anticipatory Direction with a single, Advance Care Directive Form.
Did you know without an Advance Care Directive and in the event of legal incapacity you would lose control over what happens to you and your body. In order to ensure your dignity, we always advise our clients as to the preparation of an Advance Care Directive to ensure that the power stays with you as it should. Your body, your choice! In our experience, the requirement for this document may occur at any time in life.
Probate
Probate is a legal term for the process in which a Will is reviewed to determine whether it is valid and authentic. Probate also refers to the general administering of a deceased person’s will or the estate of a deceased person who died without a will.
After an asset-holder dies, the court appoints either an executor named in the Will or an administrator (if there is no will) to administer the process of probate. This involves “collecting” the assets of a deceased person to pay any liabilities and distribute the net assets of the estate to the beneficiaries. You will need to obtain a Grant of Probate in order to deal with the assets of the deceased. At Terese Wacyk Legal, we know how to deal with estates and ensure the assets of the deceased are transferred to the loved ones of the deceased, as intended in the Will and without complication in the event that you have a properly drawn Will.
