Overview of Wills and Estate Planning Law

Substantive Law

CPD Points 1

Rating:

4.8/5

This course provides a practical introduction to Wills and estate planning law in Australia, covering the key considerations for lawyers when giving estate planning advice.

Despite being one of the most important documents a person can make, statistics show that more than 50% of Australian adults do not have a Will. However, estate planning is much broader than simply preparing and executing a Will – it involves a process of helping clients to rearrange their affairs during their lifetime to best achieve the desired outcome on their death. This is a key area where lawyers can assist clients.

This course provides a practical introduction to Wills and estate planning law in Australia. The course covers the key considerations for lawyers when giving estate planning advice:

identifying assets and liabilities, particularly assets that require special treatment;
dealing with life insurance and superannuation benefits;
requirements for preparing and executing a valid Will;
limiting the impact of family provision legislation;
using testamentary trusts in Wills; and
testamentary capacity and substitute decision-making documents.

Last Updated: December 2021

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Author Profiles

Lucy Dickens

Lucy is a Senior Associate at Birman & Ride where she brings together people, process and technology to reshape the provision of legal services, constantly challenging the way things are done to see if they can be improved.

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Michael Hodgkins

Michael has been a partner of Birman & Ride since July 2009. He leads the firm’s family and property law teams which offer a broad range of services including settlements, commercial law, family law, wills and estate planning.

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What Lawyers Say

5.0/5

Thank you

The course was excellent and enjoyable to undertake. It was interesting and a healthy refresher.
- H. Pearce, Solicitor
5.0/5

Good overview

A very good overview of an often misunderstood and underrated area of the law.
- H. Concanen, Solicitor
5.0/5

Super helpful

I tracked back through this course that I did last year to learn a little more about a Will - so it has been super helpful.
- Tracey Jackson, Solicitor, RSPCA Queensland
4.0/5

A useful course.

I found this course useful and the website was easy to navigate.
- Dimitrios Katsaros, Partner, Katsaros & Associates