Writing a Will is of utmost importance, but it seem to be treated as a daunting task. Even if we know the importance of having a written Will, we still procrastinated on the simple task. Why do we need to have a written Will? A Will is a written instrument which we can use to facilitate distribution of our assets to our loved ones upon our demises. The instrument is legal and will clearly state who will inherit our assets, when they can inherit the assets, and the conditions that must be met in order for them to receive our assets. Benefits Of A Written Will
- Our wishes and preferences can be tailored with options to bequeath to desired beneficiaries by predetermined proportions and age
- For special circumstances, we can include a Testamentary Trust for special instruction request ; or leave message to a specific person.
- We can appoint our preferred executors and trustee to manage and distribute the estate and also a Guardian to act as caretaker, for cases of minors or children below 18 years of age.
- Minimize legal formalities and expenses. Assets administration and distribution can be carried out smoothly upon demise. Family disputes will not arise and legal application for Grant of Probate can be approved by normal procedure of the court.
- Assets will be frozen if there is no written Will. Distribution of assets will be delayed as legal application for Letter of Administration is required. The application can only be effected after getting consensus agreement from all related beneficiary members in the family. Family disputes, if arise over the distribution of assets, will cause further complications and delay application for Letter Of Administration and approval by the court.
The Important Components Of A Will
- Appointment of willing Executors or Trustee to carry out the instructions or wishes as stipulated in the written Will. Take note that the appointed executor of the Will cannot be a named beneficiary in the written Will, otherwise it will become void.
- Custodian to ensure that the Will is kept in a safe place until demise. Special attention for safe custodian and accessibility of the written Will is of utmost importance to ensure that the legacy can be passed on to the loved ones effectively and smoothly upon demise.
- There had been cases where the written Will documents could not be located upon demises due to lack of proper custodian. It is advisable to keep it in custodian with the trustee company and have trusted members in the family informed, especially when the estate is considerably large.
- Appointment of Administrator of the estate to make the necessary legal applications and ensure that the distribution of assets is carried out in accordance with the written Will and law.
Failure to have a Will written may be costly and can cause a lot of problems on the distribution of our assets to those whom we are going to leave behind one day. There had been cases where distribution of large assets of the demises took many long years to settle due family disputes. High legal cost would definitely be incurred and all assets were frozen. Let’s all stop procrastination and act promptly for the benefits of our loved ones before the day when we are called back to rest, and to truly rest in peace only if a Will have been written before death.