Estate planners continue to grapple with client demands for certainty and the need for flexible planning that can adapt to fix problems or when the client’s circumstances change. This half day masterclass will address these areas and the impact family dynamics can have on the estate plan, with sessions on how to future-proof the estate plan, managing inter-generational living arrangements, and effective estate planning for second spouses and children of first marriage.

Future-proofing the Estate Plan to Minimise Challenges

What steps can an estate planner take to minimise the risk of challenge to the estate post-death? This session considers the use of contractual arrangements to protect the estate plan, including:

• Ways to manage family provision claims:

  • the use of binding financial agreements - can they prevent a claim?

  • release of family provision claim entitlements - when is this an option?

• Inter vivos strategies:

  • gifting assets to intended beneficiaries

  • transferring assets into tailored discretionary trust

  • gift and loan back arrangements

• Mutual wills and option agreements

• Documenting decisions to exclude a potential beneficiary from the will:

  • do you need an affidavit or statutory declaration?

  • has the testator been advised about consequences and potential risks?

Dodging the Traps with Inter-Generational Living Arrangements

Many families embark on intergenerational living arrangements without due consideration for legalities or the risks of changes in circumstances in the future. This session considers the issues that can arise and provides strategies for how to manage the risks, including:

• Issues around granny flats or annexed houses:

  • managing Centrelink: gifting money and granting a licence to occupy

  • provisions where the arrangements aren’t suitable for either party

  • what happens when the parent moves into a nursing home?

  • should the parental contribution to the granny flat be a loan or gift? Is there security offered?

  • where the siblings are at war - structuring to avoid conflict after death

  • incorporating effective dispute mechanisms and allowing for ‘what if’ situations

• Rights and obligations where younger generation is providing almost full-time care

Estate Planning for Second Spouses and Children of First Marriages

Each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, and a blended family increases the likelihood of unhappiness when it comes to estate planning. When a blended family consists of adult children of the first relationship and minor children of the second, there is a tension between the needs of the minor children and the expectations of the adults. This session reviews the practical issues that often arise in the context of blended families and how to deal with these, including:

• Identifying the needs of the surviving spouse, minor children vs adult children of the previous relationship

• Using testamentary trusts to ensure the surviving spouse is taken care of whilst guaranteeing residual capital to the children

• Mutual wills - what can you do to avoid the second partner spending the entire estate and the adult children missing out?

• The sufficiency of a life interest over the family home - keeping the second spouse and adult children from the first marriage happy

• The advantages and disadvantages of providing the spouse with a right to reside in the main residence

• Second spouse planning and SMSFs

Estate Planning Using the Small Business 15-Year Exemption

The small business 15-year exemption is a highly potent estate planning tool - when available, it can enable the disposal or transfer of CGT assets tax-free. This session uses case study examples to consider how and when the 15-year exemption can be used for the purposes of transferring assets from one entity to another. It covers:

• What types of assets may be eligible?
  • Active assets
  • Passively held assets
  • Partnership and partner’s assets
• Which taxpayers are eligible for the exemption?
  • Small business entity
  • CGT concession stakeholders
  • 55+ yrs or permanently incapacitated
• Consequences when the exemption applies

Gerard Basha, Partner, Bartier Perry, Sydney (Chair)

Robert Monahan, Principal, Monahan Estate Planning, Sydney

John de Groot, Special Counsel, de Groots Wills and Estates Lawyers, Brisbane, Sydney & Melbourne

Katelin Whitley, Principal, Bestic Law, Sydney

Susan Young, Principal, Susan Young Tax Training, Brisbane

Multiple registration discount?  If you would like to send more than one person from your company to this masterclass, please ask Jenna about the discounts available for multiple registrations:  The more you send, the greater the discount.  [email protected] or phone (03) 8601 7729.