Estate Planning
The will
Items not in a will
Items that aren’t distributed via a will include:
- Interest in a property owned as a joint tenant. Often the family home is held in joint tenancy. The ownership reverts to the other joint owner on death.
- Bank accounts held in joint names revert to the joint owner on death.
- Insurance policy proceeds with another person or entity nominated as beneficiary or owned on your life by another person or entity.
- Assets within a corporate structure. For example, if an individual drives a company car, the car is not owned by the individual. They can only include the shares of the company, which they personally own, in their Will.
- Superannuation benefits, unless the member has elected to have their superannuation death benefits paid to their estate, or the trustee, under its discretionary powers, has decided to pay a death benefit to the estate.
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