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Old 27-08-2018, 04:35 PM   #335
Express
Bathed In A Yellow Glow
 
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Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: NSW Central Coast
Posts: 2,548
Default Re: Schumacher critical

Thanks for the condolences, as a family we are still somewhat in shock and deeply in mourning.

These situations are awful and because there is so much emotion involved the last thing you ever want to do is let go of someone you love regardless of their wishes or even if your head tells you it’s the right thing to do.

So it is a sensible topic to bring up with your families and finalise legally while you have the chance.

Our ordeal was quick but it was over a few months which at least gave us some time to prepare the legal side of things, some people don’t get that chance, for some you’re here one day and gone the next.

There are members on this forum who are more equipped to give legal advice than me as what I have to say is only as someone who has just gone through it.

So seek professional advice when planning your affairs.

We already had wills and general Powers of Attorney in place but it wasn’t until my wife became ill that an elderly relative informed us of the need for the Enduring Power of Attorney and that sent us off to a solicitor for legal advice.

Also and this wasn’t in our case but it something that happen last year to a friend of ours whose husband died young.

His employer deposited her husband’s salary into her husband’s personal bank account and it had accumulated and grown over the years to a substantial sum and was their only source of income. Because the account was only in his name it was suspended until probate was finalised leaving her without access to funds. If that salary had been either deposited or regularly transferred to a joint account it would have instantly become hers and falls outside any will. And I guess most of you know the same goes for property where joint ownership on the title deeds means the property automatically goes to the surviving spouse, de facto or partner and also falls outside of the will.

Of course the old saying that where there’s a will there’s a relative always applies and everything is contestable but to do the best you can for your spouses and partners it’s best to start early not later when later can be too late.




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