A will is one of the most vital legal documents you will ever sign. Thus it demands careful consideration and regular examination, especially of the content. One crucial document frequently gets ignored when one’s financial and personal situations change one’s will, according to top law firms in Dubai.
While you might have been confident that your will properly reflected your preferences when it was first written, keep in mind that relationships, family dynamics, and goals change with time and that you should review your choice.
According to top law firms in Dubai, you are better off if you have a will in place. However, how recently was this legal document written? Do you recall exactly what you wanted when you had it prepared? While many believe creating a will is a one-time effort, there are better ways to use estate planning tools.
Our relationships and interests can alter since life is erratic. If you’ve created a will in the past, reviewing it and other estate-planning documents is essential to ensure the information still reflects your preferences. A sizable portion of people lacks willpower.
Many people either choose not to consider the possibility of their death or believe their estate will be distributed to the beneficiaries of their choice should they pass away. Unfortunately, this is frequently not the case, and your estate may end up going to people you didn’t intend, which could put your loved ones in danger.
- Your Situations
A review of your will may be necessary if your circumstances have changed, including your marital status or any changes to your immediate family, like the birth of a child or grandchild. Changing your will would be a top priority if you had just gotten divorced.
It will be assumed that your ex-spouse had passed away before the date of your divorce if your will was written before the divorce and you have been divorced for less than three months. As a result, they cannot entitle to any benefits under your will.
However, it will be presumed that you meant to provide for your ex-spouse if you haven’t changed your will within the three months following your divorce.
2.Your Minor Child’s Guardian
It’s essential to confirm that the guardians you originally named are still the people you would want to raise your minor children with should you pass away because friends and relationships change from time to time.
Suppose you have designated your parents or your spouse’s parents as guardians for your minor children. In that case, you should exercise caution and consider whether they would be physically able to care for your children during your demise.
You might discover that as your parents get older, you are less confident in their capacity to care for your kids. One choice is to name a backup guardian in your will to take over if your parents cannot carry out their responsibilities.
3.Your Nominated Trustees
In the same way, consider if the people you choose to serve as trustees for your testamentary trust are still people you can rely on to act in your children’s best interests.
If one or more of them are unavailable when it’s time, you should propose an alternative group of trustees or alternate trustees.
Consider making sure that one of your trustees is an independent individual with fiduciary experience because you should pay attention to the significant role that your trustees will play in managing and investing the trust’s assets and making decisions on the care of your children.
4.Duration of Your Testamentary Trust
Review your testamentary trust’s provisions once more, paying particular attention to the trust’s duration and the age at which your children should be when it expires.
Top law firms in Dubai say your choice may change as your children become older and you become more aware of their financial savvy and fiscal responsibility. You could choose an age between 18 and 23 if your kids show signs of maturity and you feel more confident in their ability to manage their expenses.
Most parents feel comfortable setting up a testamentary trust that will end when the youngest kid reaches the age of 25. On the other hand, you may feel more comfortable making sure your children have more life experience.
5.Your Executor
Top law firms in Dubai recommend verifying your nominee for executor again to ensure the person or business is still the best fit for the position.
If you want to avoid leaving your loved ones in a situation where they cannot identify the company or person you have designated as executor, make sure the company you have named is still in operation. Companies like law firms, banks, investment houses, etc., merge, close down, or change their names.
If you have named a family member as your executor, consider how the family dynamics have changed since you initially called them and whether they are still qualified to carry out your will.
6.Your Special Bequests
Evaluating any specific bequests you have made in your will may be worthwhile to make sure they still reflect your intentions.
This is especially true if you have left a fixed rand sum to a particular legatee that no longer accurately reflects your actual net worth.
Additionally, confirm that your legatees are still alive and that no other individuals need a specific bequest.
7.Foreign Assets
A review of your will may be necessary if you have acquired any overseas assets since writing it.
A foreign will may need to be drafted, depending on the type of foreign assets and the country in which they are located.
You will need to update your present will to ensure that it expressly indicates that it exclusively applies to your assets.
8.The Residue of Your Estate
To properly handle the remainder of your estate, including a leftovers provision. Any bequests or legacies you have specified in your will are paid out to the designated heirs or legatees after all debts have been paid. Then the remaining assets of your estate are dispersed among your beneficiaries.
The remainder of your inheritance, however, could be distributed per the law of intestacy, which would indicate that you died partially intestate if you have yet to clearly state how you would pay for everything else in your estate to be handled. If there isn’t one, it could be a good idea to rewrite your will and include a suitable provision.
9.The Original Document of Your Will
Your executor must locate an original signed copy of your will to be considered valid.
It could be wise to completely rewrite your will if you only have a copy and need to know where the original is.
You should ideally have three originals of your will that you and your witnesses sign, and each source should be kept in a different, secure place.
The Final Words
Unsurprisingly, updating one’s will and estate plan is probably not front of mind when people go through the happiness or grief of any life above upheavals. However, the sooner it is resolved, the less likely it is that more severe problems will arise with an outdated Will or estate plan. Some of this article’s methods might not apply to your financial situation.
