Importance of having your Will and Estate Plan prepared by a lawyer

Client owned a property with his wife. The wife intended for the property to automatically transfer to her husband upon her death. She, or her lawyer, assumed the property was held as Joint Proprietors. Therefore, the wife made no provision for her husband in relation to the property in her Will.

The client came to us to make the application to have the wife’s share of the property transferred to him as surviving proprietor. When we went to proceed with the application, it immediately came to our attention the property was held as tenants in common. This meant the right of survivorship did not apply and the application for the property to be transferred to him as sole proprietor could not be done.

It also meant that the wife’s share of the property had to be dealt with in accordance with her Will. However, no provision was made for the client in the wife’s Will. The wife’s share of the property then formed part of the wife’s residual estate, which was to be distributed to her two children, being the client’s step-children.

The relationship between the step-children and our client was fractured, causing dispute between the parties. What could have turned into a drawn-out litigation, luckily ended in a mediation between the parties who agreed to allow our client to reside in the property until he passed away, in which case the wife’s share of the property could then be dealt with in accordance with her Will and his share in accordance with his Will. This meant that our client then had to update his Will to ensure his share of the property would be dealt with as he wished.

This highlights the importance of having your Wills drafted and prepared by a lawyer experienced in Wills and who also ensures your Estate plan aligns with your Will.