Estate Planning, Trusts & Wills

• Trusts and Asset Protection
• Wills
• Estate administration

Trusts and Asset Protection

Turner Hopkins can assist in how to plan, manage and protect your assets both during your lifetime and on your death.  This asset protection incorporates the use of discretionary family trusts to manage and protect your assets.  We have experience in creating and preparing the necessary structures that will meet your personal and, if where necessary, commercial circumstances.

There are a number of reasons for establishing a Trust.  These include asset protection, protection from creditors, potential tax advantages, means testing protecting and relationship property protection (matrimonial).

Wills

Apart from using Trusts to plan your estate, the other way to ensure what you have worked hard for goes to those you wish is to prepare a Will.  Every person over the age of 18 should consider preparing a Will.

If a person dies without a Will, then your assets and other personal possessions will be distributed in accordance with the Administration Act 1969.  It is then quite possible that your estate may go to people that you did not wish to and the costs to administer the estate, where there is no Will, will be more.  Turner Hopkins can assist in preparing or updating your Will.

Estate Administration

We can assist in the administration of your estate following death.  This would include making application to the High Court for the last Will to be approved for administration.  Assisting in collecting and managing the estate assets, paying any outstanding debts or moneys from the estate, helping to complete a tax return for the estate, and ultimately assisting with distribution of the estate to the named beneficiaries.  We can also assist the personal representatives on any legal issues or matters that may arise during the administration of a deceased’s estate.

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