5 Reasons Young People Should Have a Will
If you die without a Will your property will be distributed based on a formula created by the government. This can leave your loved ones with nothing. It’s safe to say, the more you have, the more the need a Will. Your Estate includes all the money and property you own. This can include houses, vehicles, investments, shares in a corporation, intellectual property, and even airmiles.
There is no “right” time to start preparing a Will. People often delay writing a Will until they are married, buy property, or have children. However, waiting for these typical life events before writing a Will can have grave consequences for your family and friends.
Here are 5 main reasons why a young person needs a Will
- Your Inheritance, Your Way
If you receive an inheritance, a Will can clearly outline how you want the assets to be distributed. Without a Will in place, the government formula will govern how the inheritance is distributed. - Traveler’s Protection
Although it is not something anyone wants to think about, serious accidents can happen while travelling. If you are away from your country of residence having a document called a Power of Attorney (which is a companion document to a Will) gives a trusted individual of your choosing the authority to manage your money and property while you are unable to The authorized person can carry out your banking, access your accounts, sign cheques, buy or sell real estate, and borrow money on your behalf. - Make the Estate Distribution Process Easy for Your Family
If you die without a Will, your family will have to go through a court process. This involves applying to a court to become an Administrator with the legal power to manage your Estate. The law prioritizes people who can apply as an Administrator of your Estate. Who the law gives priority to may not be the person you want to be in charge of your Estate.
If you have children and no Will, the Court may appoint a Guardian to look after them. And, as long as your children are under the age of 19, the Public Guardian and Trustee can control their share of your Estate and decide what your child’s priorities should be. This can be extremely frustrating and can add a layer of complexity for your family to deal with on top of grieving from your passing.
- You Care About What Happens if You are Seriously Ill or in a Coma If you have become ill or incapacitated, it is important to have a document providing instructions on how to proceed with medical treatment, or when to cut medical treatment off. Representative Agreements commonly accompany Wills. This keeps family members from getting into a battle amongst themselves about important what they think your health-care wishes are.
- You are Active on Social Media Most people spend time online communicating with friends, saving and storing photos, and even managing our finances. In the event of death, once a social media platform becomes aware or is notified of an account holder’s death, it may freeze the account or delete the account. Each platform is different in how it treats an account holders’ information upon death. For example, Facebook keeps the account but adds “remembering” before the account holder’s name. If friends or family need to access the account to retrieve photos, respond to messages, update profile, etc., the account holder needs to have an “legacy contact”. If a legacy contact is not appointed, the account information cannot be retrieved, including the content listed above.
A Will does not need to be complicated, it just needs to have clear instructions for managing your Estate. It prevents spending money on expensive Court processes. Furthermore, it allows for you to choose how you want to distribute your assets without government legislation choosing for you.
If you would like to know more, please contact us at Lam
Know Your Rights
At Lambert Law, we recommend seeking legal advice to help guide you and protect your rights. If you would like to learn more about your rights, we would be pleased to meet with you and answer your questions. Contact us for a free, no obligation consultation.
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