What is a Will & Enduring Power of Attorney?

We are often asked the question 'What is a Will & Enduring Power of Attorney'?

In this video, Wills & Estates Solicitor Steven Mahoney explains why it's important to have these in place even before you take a trip overseas.

Contact our Gold Coast Lawyers team for more information on Wills & Estates.

Transcript

My name is Steven Mahoney from OMB Solicitors, I'm an Associate here and I'm going to take you through today briefly the explanation of what is a will and an enduring power of attorney and the importance of having those documents in place before you duck off to a quick trip overseas, or it might be an extended vacation.

Firstly, it's pretty important to understand what is a will and what is an enduring power of attorney, they aren't concurrent documents. So taking through firstly, an enduring power of attorney is a document which is in existence whilst you're alive and a will comes into play and only comes into play upon your passing.

So the first thing in many, people head off overseas, they've got considerable assets back home, don't have their estate planning in order. What if something goes wrong? That's what I want to take you through today and the potential implications that'll have for your family and also potentially for your loved ones.

So the enduring power of attorney is going to be a document that deals with if something happens to you overseas and we need to take care of your financial matters or your personal matters, that document is going to appoint someone to deal with that on your behalf.

So that might be a parent, it might be a partner, it might be a friend. Having that in place is extremely important and sometimes what I'd say is the most important document you'll ever sign, because when you're dead, you're dead, you don't have control of that.

But whilst you're alive, you want to make sure that someone you trust is dealing with your financial manners, both personal and financial, in a manner you see fit.

With your will, we also need to make sure that you've got that in play if something were to happen to ensure that your assets are going where you wish to your loved ones and to those who you obviously desire, and one of the things that many young people think, they don't believe they do have an estate but it's important to understand your superannuation as well, which might have a death benefit component attached to it, which can have some sizeable amounts.

That in essence doesn't form part of your estate. So it's extremely important whether you do have an industry super fund with one of the main industry funds to ensure that you have a binding death benefit nomination in place.

Again, that's just a fancy word for a will for your super, but we need to make sure as well that that's going to go across to those parties which you wish to see fit, and it'll obviously make sure that we take into account both your will, which deals with all of your estate, as well as your superannuation.

Getting those in play, it can be very simple, it can require a quick, simple chat which we can set up in a matter of days. Come in, have a chat to us, get everything sorted to make sure that nothing happens to you whilst you're overseas and to make sure everything's in place for now and into the future.