Estate planning Armadale — wills, trusts and looking after the people who depend on you

Armadale families often come to us at a turning point — a renovation just finished, a second child on the way, a young business taking off, an ageing parent slowing down. It's the kind of moment when "we should really sort out the wills" suddenly feels urgent. Good news: it doesn't have to be complicated to do well, and putting a proper plan in place now means you can stop worrying about it for years.

At a glance — estate planning in Armadale

The estate-planning conversation most Armadale families haven't had yet

If you've got young children, here's the thing most people put off thinking about: if both parents are gone, who looks after them, and how is their inheritance held until they're old enough to handle it? You can appoint a guardian in your will — that's how you nominate the person who would raise your children. And you can use a testamentary trust to hold their inheritance, with a trustee who manages the money, distributes income as needed for their upbringing, and releases capital at staged ages (often 21, 25, 30). That structure protects them from inheriting a lump sum at 18 — which most 18-year-olds aren't ready for.

It's not morbid to put these in place. It's the most caring thing you can do.

What we cover

• Wills properly drafted to deal with young children — guardianship appointments, executor and trustee choices, residue clauses, contingent beneficiaries.
• Testamentary trusts for minors — holding the inheritance, releasing income for education and upbringing, staging capital distributions, with a trustee you trust.
• Family-provision planning — relevant even for younger families, particularly where there's a first marriage and a new partner.
• Business succession — coordinating the will with your professional-practice or business structures so the business doesn't collapse in the event of your death.
• Enduring Power of Attorney (financial + personal) — capacity-loss documents that prevent your family from needing a VCAT application if you're unable to make decisions for yourself.
• Medical Treatment Decision Maker — under the Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 (Vic).
• Updating older wills — if you wrote a will when you were single and you now have a partner and children, that will is almost certainly no longer fit for purpose.

When Armadale families usually call us

• A baby is on the way and the existing will doesn't deal with children.
• A second renovation has substantially increased the value of the home.
• A business has had a successful exit and the financial picture has shifted.
• Parents are ageing and the family is realising no one has thought about Powers of Attorney.

Frequently asked questions

Do I really need a lawyer to draft a will, or is a DIY kit enough?

For straightforward small estates a kit can technically work, but the cost of getting it wrong is enormous — invalid execution, ambiguous wording, missed superannuation, missed family-provision risk. For most families in Armadale, where there are real assets, blended-family considerations or a business, paying a lawyer once costs less than what a contested estate or a probate dispute will eventually cost the people you love.

What's a testamentary trust and do I need one?

A testamentary trust is a trust created by your will that holds your estate for the benefit of your beneficiaries (often your children or grandchildren). The main benefits are tax effectiveness (income to minors is taxed at adult rates inside a testamentary trust), asset protection (the assets are not personally held by the beneficiary so they're harder to lose in divorce or bankruptcy), and control (you can stage when beneficiaries receive capital). It's not for everyone — but for families with reasonable wealth or business interests, it's often worth the additional drafting cost.

How often should I update my will?

Update it when life materially changes: a separation or divorce, a new partner, a child or grandchild born, a death of a named beneficiary or executor, a significant change in assets (buying a business, selling the family home), a move interstate or overseas. As a general rule, if you can't remember when you last looked at your will, it's probably time.

What's a Family Provision claim and why does it matter to my estate plan?

Under Part IV of the Administration and Probate Act 1958 (Vic), certain people (children — adult and minor, a spouse, a former spouse in some cases, a dependent) can challenge a will on the basis that adequate provision wasn't made for their proper maintenance and support. The Court can re-order the estate. Good estate planning anticipates this — we identify who has standing, what the realistic claim risk is, and structure the estate (often via testamentary trust, sometimes with statements of wishes, sometimes with inter vivos gifts during life) to minimise the disruption.

Should I appoint a professional executor or a family member?

It depends on the complexity. A family member who is organised and on good terms with the other beneficiaries is often the right choice for straightforward estates. For complex estates — business interests, blended families, beneficiaries who don't get along, significant philanthropic bequests, or assets in multiple jurisdictions — a professional executor (a solicitor or a trustee company) takes the burden off the family and provides neutrality. We can discuss the right choice for your circumstances.

What's an Enduring Power of Attorney and a Medical Treatment Decision Maker — and do I need them?

Yes. A will only operates after you die. An Enduring Power of Attorney (financial and/or personal) appoints someone to make decisions for you if you lose capacity. A Medical Treatment Decision Maker (under the Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 (Vic)) appoints someone to make medical decisions. Without these, your family may need to apply to VCAT for an administration or guardianship order — which is slow, public and stressful. Putting both in place at the same time as your will is straightforward and brings real peace of mind.

We have young children — who should we appoint as guardian?

Choose someone whose values, parenting style and life situation are most aligned with how you'd want your kids raised — not necessarily a sibling by default. Talk to them first; the role is significant and they need to be willing to take it on. We can also appoint substitute guardians in case the primary appointee can't act. The appointment in your will isn't legally binding on the Court (the Family Law Act always centres the child's best interests), but it carries substantial weight in practice.

Should the guardian and the trustee of the children's testamentary trust be the same person?

Not usually. Separating the two roles — guardian raises the children, independent trustee manages the money — is best practice for most families. It avoids the guardian having to be both the caregiver and the gatekeeper of the children's money, which can create conflict; it also adds a check on how the money is spent. We routinely structure estates this way.