Wills, Power of Attorney & Estate Planning

Ensuring that all your legal affairs are in order and that they reflect your wishes, will help ensure that your assets are protected, and that your wishes are followed in the event that you become incapacitated or pass away. The first and most important step is making a will.

A will simply records what a person wants to happen to their property in the event of their death and, what is to happen to their body. Sometimes, the latter may be more important to family than the property.

Making a will is all part of planning and can be as simple or as complicated as the circumstances dictate. A properly drafted will makes it easier for those left behind, as the wishes of the deceased are clearly set out.

Wills should be reviewed every few years and updated, this is particularly important when your circumstances change, such as:

• Marriage or civil union
• Separation
• Dissolution of marriage or civil union
• Children
• Death of an executor or beneficiary

Wills can be challenged after the death of the will maker. It is therefore important to make sure that wills are drafted properly to avoid any possible challenges. We offer a special price for the drafting or updating of straight forward wills to encourage clients to make or to update their wills. At the time of making a will it is wise to consider other matters such as preparing a Power of Attorney or to look at the ownership structure of property – otherwise referred to as Estate Planning.

A power of attorney allows a person who is mentally capable to appoint another person to act on their behalf.

An enduring power of attorney has wide powers and is not revoked when a person becomes mentally incapable.  There are two types of enduring power of attorney one for personal care and welfare and the other for property matters.  Two or more attorneys may be appointed for property matters but only one attorney can be appointed for personal care and welfare.  The same attorney can be used for each matter.

We strongly recommend that clients look at appointing an attorney under an enduring power of attorney as well as making a will.

A power of attorney may be used if a person is traveling overseas, and he or she wants someone to act for them while they are away.  The general power of attorney ends when the donor or person who made the appointment, returns to New Zealand, becomes mentally incapable, revokes the power of attorney in writing or passes away.

To enable another person to run a business on behalf of another person, a corporate power of attorney may be required.

Other power of attorneys to consider – irrevocable power of attorney and trustee’s power of attorney.

Our services include the following:

• Wills
• General Power of Attorney
• Enduring Power of Attorney
• Estate Planning

Useful information from The Law Society

• Making a Will and Estate Administration
• Powers of Attorney