Have you been through any of the following life changes recently? Divorce? Marriage? Lost a loved one? Had a baby? Bought or sold a house? Changed jobs? Retired? Changing circumstances may have negative effects on the outcome of your Will. In order to prevent unnecessary heartache caused by an outdated Will, you need to review your Will regularly to make sure that the legal, tax and practical implications are in line with your current situation and intentions. Our Will service includes: Drawing up your Will taking into account your unique circumstances and all relevant legislation, tax, and practical implications; Our Will service includes: Drawing up your Will taking into account your unique circumstances and all relevant legislation, tax, and practical implications; Drawing up your Will taking into account your unique circumstances and all relevant legislation, tax, and practical implications; Free safe keeping of your original Will to ensure the Will is readily available at the right time; Annual Will review to ensure your Will stays relevant to your changing circumstances; Access to our Online Will System. Contact us to assist you with the drafting or review of your...
The law requires all trustees to act independently and impartially. In most family trust setups the founder, trustees, and beneficiaries are all related to one another and act in more than one capacity (being a beneficiary and trustee). In a setup like this, it can be very difficult for the trustees to act independently and impartially. This can defeat the purpose of the establishment of the trust and can leave the trust open to an attack as a sham or an invalid trust. In order to reduce the risk of trust assets being regarded as your personal assets, and leaving them exposed to 3rd parties, it is crucial to appoint an independent trustee. Most Masters of the High Court now also require the appointment of an independent trustee in addition to the trustees who are beneficiaries of the trust. An independent trustee will be a person who is not related to the founder, trustees or beneficiaries, and who derives no benefit from the trust assets. The independent trustee plays a crucial role in ensuring better management and administration of the trust. The most important benefits of appointing an independent trustee are that it ensures the following: objectivity to how the trustees deal with trust assets; compliance with the provisions of the trust deed and statutory requirements; all trust beneficiaries are treated fairly; conducting proper trustee meetings; recording minutes of all meetings and major decisions by the trustees For any advice on trusts, please contact us – or...
