Do you have a will? Is it up to date?
Specialized services
It is often surprising for us as attorneys to see how many people, whose other affairs apparently seem to be properly organised, have a will that is 20 or 30 years old - or who do not even have one at all.
Nobody obviously likes to think about dying. Consequently, people do not like to talk about their will. It is, however, something that you owe your loved ones. It does not cost a lot, in terms of time and money, to do some estate planning and have a proper will drafted. And it can prevent a lot of headaches.
We can assist you to make the right decisions for your specific circumstances.
We’ll help you to amongst others:
- look after your surviving spouse in your will, but also ensure that your children inherit;
- choose the right guardians for your minor children;
- cater for the registration of a trust for your minor children to ensure that cash inheritances are not paid to the Guardians Fund of the State;
- save on Estate Duty and Capital Gains Tax;
- cater for the possible insolvency of your heirs;
- not cause headaches for your family by ruling from the grave.
Checklist for your will
FAQ's on Wills & Estate Planning
Click here for FAQ’s on wills and estate planning. We would be surprised if you have a question that is not answered.
List of documents to keep with your will
Click here for a list of documents and information you should keep together with the copy of your will.
Costs
Our estates expert will draft your will for FREE.
Our value added service includes:
- FREE revision of your will at any stage;
- A FREE living will – what is a living will?
- A Professional executor winding up your estate as efficiently as possible;
- Lifelong safe storage in our fireproof vault;
- Expert management of any trusts created in your will.
Living wills
It is generally accepted that a patient has the right to refuse treatment even if such refusal may cause injury or death.
A “living will” can be defined as an advanced directive by a person to the effect that if at any time he should suffer from an incurable disease or injury, which cannot be successfully treated, life-sustaining treatment should be withheld, and the patient left to die naturally. In other words, as soon as the person is not capable of instructing a doctor, the advanced directive in the form of the living will, will become relevant.
This makes the decision for the family and the doctor easier to switch off, for example, life-sustaining machines where the patient is braindead and there is no hope whatsoever that the person will recover. This can obviously prevent a lot of trauma and medical costs.
A living will therefore pertains to passive euthanasia.
It is important to rather have a living will as a separate document from your normal will to enable the living will to be handed to your doctor and family.
The living will can also provide for organ donation.
We draft living wills free of charge.
Trustee Appointments
We accept trustee appointments as trustees for testamentary trusts for minor children and also as independent trustees for inter vivos trusts; i.e. trusts created during the lifetime of the donor. As experienced attorneys and members of The Fiduciary Institute of South Africa we can give you the assurance that your trust funds are in safe and capable hands. We know how to
- balance the immediate needs of the beneficiaries with the necessity of preserving and growing the trust assets for the long term;
- ensure that neither SARS nor creditors can attack the validity of your trust.
Administration of deceased estates
We specialise in the drafting of wills, estate planning and the administration of deceased estates. In 2019 our specialists administered more than 120 deceased estates with a combined value of more than R300m. Despite our size, we guarantee you and your family personal attention and service, contrary to what many clients experience at large institutions such as the banks and insurance companies. The prescribed fee for winding-up of a deceased estate is 3,5% of the gross value of the estate plus VAT as well as 6% of the income after death plus VAT. We are, however, always prepared to consider giving a discount on our fees, especially where the surviving spouse inherits everything. Click here for a list of documents and information we require to report and wind-up a deceased estate.
