Drafting for Maximum Impact in your Succession Law Practice – a recorded lunchtime online conference

Duration: Approximately 2.5 Hours

Hear from the experts at this online conference. You can watch it on your computer or on your portable electronic device from anywhere.

The conference will be based on our highly successful video webinar technology: there'll be a chairperson and presentations.

One registration can be shared by colleagues within the same firm utilising the same login.

THE PROGRAM

Session 1: Protecting the Bank of Mum and Dad: What Should Be in a Family Loan Agreement?

Adult children are increasingly looking to their parents to fund education expenses or property purchases as the cost of living rises and wages remain stagnant. This session will provide a guide to documenting loan arrangements between parents and their children with a focus on protecting parents while maintaining family relationships, including:

• Acting for one party – determining who your client is and obtaining appropriate instructions
• Gift or loan? Considering intention and how to ensure document accurately reflects them
• Tips for binding and enforceable agreements
• Agreement essentials including:

• Determining the parties – children and spouses?
• Detailing the consideration including future obligations
• Repayments, instalments and timing
• What conditions or restrictions are required?
• When should security be taken?

• Drafting for future circumstances including relationship breakdowns, death and changed situations
• Updating wills to reflect loan agreements and forgiveness of loans
• Drafting tips to withstand challenges.

Session 2: Will Drafting: Managing Tricky Family Arrangements

The rise of increasingly complex family relationships, asset holdings and business structures have all impacted the way in which wills are drafted and assets are divided following death. This session will explore the more complex arrangements that a will may need to cover and how to incorporate these into the document, including:

• Rights of residence and life interests and ongoing costs and entitlement issues
• Drafting mutual wills – more trouble than they’re worth?
• Issues in passing on the family business and partnership interests
• Capital gains tax and other implications of asset sale and distribution
• The interplay between superannuation funds and wills, including the effect of binding death benefit nominations

Session 3: Protecting Those Who Need It Most: Testamentary Trusts for Vulnerable Beneficiaries

The care and maintenance of vulnerable family members following the death of a parent or carer can be a significant source of concern. This session will explore the option of establishing a testamentary trust for the vulnerable and what needs to be in the trust deed, including:

• Assessing the future needs of vulnerable family members and considering how they can best be accommodated on the death of a carer/parent
• Assessing ongoing physical, accommodation, medical, financial, social and other support required
• Trustee choice and ongoing issues of control and management
• Factoring in equality (or not) of asset and income distribution and sibling relationship issues
• When is a Special Disability (SD) Trust available and beneficial?
• Considerations in drafting a SD Trust, including:
  • Relevant legislation
  • Eligibility
  • Model Deed
  • Limitations
  • Impact on pensions and government benefits
  • Ending of the trust and residual beneficiaries
• Common drafting errors in testamentary trusts for vulnerable beneficiaries and how to avoid them