Will Lawyers Melbourne

You should update your Will after significant life changes, such as marriage, divorce, the birth of children, or the acquisition of new assets. This ensures your estate planning reflects your current circumstances. If you are unsure whether your current Will needs an update, get in touch with our team for a free chat about your circumstances.

Simple Wills can often be organised with one appointment and finalised within a few weeks time. This allows time to gather required financial and personal information, drafting, review and finalising. You’ll need to have it signed and witnessed once these steps are completed, and then decide on the best way to safely store it. If you have a complex estate or need to gather further information, the process will take longer, but even in that situation, it can be finalised within 1-2 months.

Wills & Estate Planning Lawyers are the best choice for creating or updating a Will. They offer expert advice on how to plan ahead at different life stages, and ensure your Will complies with legal requirements set out in the Wills Act, 1997 (Vic).

They can also look at ways for transfers to be made that reduce tax, and how to include children under 18 and vulnerable beneficiaries into your Will. Our Wills & Estate Lawyers take the time to understand your circumstances and thoughtfully plan out your instructions to minimise the risk of future disputes.

Your Will should outline how your assets, including property and personal belongings are distributed, and how debts and liabilities are managed. It needs to name clear beneficiaries and instructions for how your estate is divided. It should also appoint an executor (you can appoint more than one) and nominate preferred guardianship if you have minor children.

A comprehensive Will also considers how family provision claims may affect the estate, gives clear instructions on how to handle debts and liabilities and may also include a Letter of Wishes for non-financial details or to clarify decisions set out in the Will.

Yes, you can write your own Will in Australia, but it’s a good idea to have it checked over to ensure it is legally valid, because there are strict laws on validity.

Section 7 of the Wills Act, 1997 (Vic) sets out the legal requirements for a legally valid Will. It must be in writing, signed by the testator (Will-maker), or signed by someone they have directed and acknowledged, with the testator present while being signed. It must be signed in the presence of two or more witnesses at the same time, and it’s often more sensible practice if they are not beneficiaries. It must reflect your intentions clearly and be made when you’re of sound mind, ensuring that your wishes are legally honoured after your death.

In Victoria, a Will may become partially invalid after a divorce, particularly regarding any provisions for your ex-spouse, which is why it’s so important to update your Will following a relationship breakdown. Separation alone (de facto or from a marriage), does not revoke provisions for a spouse or de facto partner. Our Wills & Estate Planning Lawyers can provide specific advice to ensure your assets are distributed according to your wishes after a separation or divorce.

In most cases, you can choose who benefits from your Will in Victoria. If a beneficiary dies within 30 days of the Will-maker, they generally cannot inherit. If assets designated for a certain beneficiary no longer exist or have changed hands, the beneficiary generally won’t be able to receive what was left.

If a beneficiary is unidentifiable or unable to be located, they also may not be able to benefit. Children who were adopted to another family are also only able to inherit from their biological parents if they leave a clear gift, not under a family provision claim, because their adopted parents now assume legal capacity as parents under current laws. The other important one is a former spouse named in the Will, because divorce revokes gifts to a former spouse in Victoria, unless the Will-maker is very clear they intend for them to be a beneficiary after a divorce takes place.

No, we do not handle contested estate litigation, but we can assist with making a claim against a deceased estate, probate applications, family provision claims and contesting a Will.

Will costs vary depending on who you decide to work with and how complex your Will is to draft. 

Our prices for Wills are as follows:

For Single Person:

• Will: $795+GST
• Enduring Power of Attorney (Financial/Personal): $350
• Appointment of Medical Treatment Decision Maker: $350
• Package (Will, Enduring Power of Attorney, and Appointment of Medical Treatment Decision Maker): $1,300

For Couples:

• Will: $1,590+GST
• Enduring Power of Attorney (Financial/Personal): $700
• Appointment of Medical Treatment Decision Maker: $700
• Package (Will, Enduring Power of Attorney, and Appointment of Medical Treatment Decision Maker): $2,600

There are lots of factors that can make a Will more complex, which will generally increase the costs of having it drafted or updated. A complex or substantial asset pool or business structure, shares, partnerships, self-managed super funds, overseas assets, family trusts, cryptocurrency, intellectual property or having a testamentary trust included in your Will add to the work required in drafting.

Blended families, having children from different relationships, having multiple relationships or overseas beneficiaries can also complicate writing a Will, especially in cases where a Will may be challenged, or where specific people are left out of a Will, or when vulnerable beneficiaries are left conditional inheritances. If there are considerable tax planning considerations such as capital gains tax, or debts, charitable bequests or family succession planning, these factors will also contribute to the effort and costs involved with creating a Will.

If any of these matters are relevant to your Will, chat to our Melbourne Wills Lawyers and we’ll be able to advise you on the best path to move forward.

In Victoria, if someone dies without a valid Will, they are considered to have died ‘intestate.’ Intestacy beneficiaries are set out in Division 3 of the administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic). The deceased’s representative generally covers funeral costs, debts, and administration fees. The remaining estate, or residuary estate, typically goes to the spouse or children, depending on surviving relatives. If there are no relatives, the state may inherit the estate as ‘bona vacantia.’

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In many circumstances, having both in place can be very beneficial. An Enduring Power of Attorney enables a person that you trust to make personal and financial decisions on your behalf if you lose decision-making capacity. Appointing a Medical Treatment Decision Maker enables a person to make medical and health decisions for you if you are unable to make those choices for yourself. They serve different purposes that are both important considerations. In Victoria, you can nominate the same person for both roles.

If you die without a Will, or a valid Will, in Victoria, you are said to have died intestate, and your estate will be distributed according to sections 70J-70N of the Administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic). Someone eligible will need to apply for Letters of Administration through the Supreme Court of Victoria and pay debts and funeral expenses. The remaining assets will be distributed to an eligible partner or relatives, depending on your surviving family’s structure. If there is no one to inherit, the State of Victoria may receive the estate as bona vacantia.

Yes you can. We help many couples to organise their initial Wills together, and update them through life transitions such as having a child, increasing assets or business value, sale of assets and property or when grandchildren arrive.

Yes we do. If you can’t make it into our Melbourne CBD office, we have 24 office locations across Melbourne. We are also able to assist you with an online appointment or over the phone if you can’t make it in, or it’s more convenient for you.