More than a will
Your Will is not enough on its own. For most South Australians, significant assets sit outside a Will entirely: superannuation, family trust assets, and jointly held property all operate under different rules. Without proper estate planning across all of these, what you intend and what actually happens can be very different things.
Our team reviews the full picture. Every asset, every structure, every person who depends on you.
What a Will does and does not cover
A Will is a legal document that directs who receives the assets registered in your name at the date of your death. It covers property you own outright: your home (if held in your name alone), bank accounts, vehicles, shares, jewellery, and personal possessions.
What it does not cover is equally important.
Assets held as joint tenants
If you own property jointly with another person as joint tenants, that asset passes automatically to the surviving owner. Your Will has no say over it.
Superannuation
Your superannuation is not part of your estate unless you direct it there. Without a current Binding Death Benefit Nomination (BDBN), the trustee of your fund decides who receives what may be your largest single asset. That decision may not match your wishes or your family’s needs.
Family trust assets
Assets held in a family trust cannot be gifted in your Will. Control of the trust itself is the issue, and it requires separate succession planning.
What happens without a valid Will
If you die without a valid Will, you die intestate. The Succession Act 2023 determines who receives your assets and who administers your estate. The result may produce an outcome you never would have chosen, and your family has no recourse.
Under intestacy rules in South Australia, if you are survived by a spouse and children, your spouse receives the first $100,000 and half the remainder. Your children share the rest. Partners, stepchildren, close friends, and favourite charities may miss out entirely.
If any beneficiary is a minor, their share must be paid to the Public Trustee for administration. You will not have proposed a guardian for your children. You will not have had any say.
When your Will needs a review
A Will should reflect your current life. Review yours every two to five years, or when any of these circumstances apply.
- Marriage: a Will made before marriage is revoked upon marriage unless it expressly states otherwise
- Separation or divorce: divorce revokes gifts and appointments to a former spouse, but separation alone does not
- Birth of children or grandchildren
- Death of a named executor or beneficiary
- Significant change in assets, including new superannuation arrangements or trust structures
- Major illness or change in health
If you have separated from a spouse or partner, your existing Will continues to apply until you change it. This includes any appointment of that person as your executor.
Who can make a Will
All adults over 18 should have a valid Will. To make a valid Will you must also have testamentary capacity: you need to understand what assets you have, their approximate value, and who has a fair claim upon them.
Considerable wealth is now held in superannuation and family trusts. In many cases, these assets represent more than everything held in a person’s own name. Your Will is only one part of a properly prepared estate plan.
How you own assets matters
Two people can own property together in two very different ways, and the difference determines what happens on death.
Joint tenants
The most common arrangement for couples. On death, the surviving owner automatically receives the asset. Your Will is irrelevant to that asset.
Tenants in common
Each person owns a specified share. You can leave your share to whoever you choose in your Will, not necessarily the other owner.
Understanding how each of your assets is held is a critical first step in proper estate planning. Our team reviews this as part of every estate planning conversation.
There is more to explore here
Wills and estate planning is a broad area. The pages below cover specific aspects in full. If you are not sure which one applies to your situation, a conversation with our team will point you in the right direction.
Testamentary Trusts
A testamentary trust Will can protect an inheritance from divorce, bankruptcy, and unnecessary tax for years after your death. It is a structure worth understanding before you finalise your Will.
Probate
When someone dies, the executor named in the Will must obtain formal recognition from the Supreme Court of South Australia before assets can be released or transferred. This is called a grant of Probate.
Estate Administration
Probate is only the beginning. Estate administration covers everything that follows: collecting assets, paying liabilities, managing inheritance claims, and distributing the estate to the right people.
Inheritance Claims
South Australian law allows certain people to claim that they have not been adequately provided for from an estate, even where the Will is valid. If you are making a claim, or managing an estate that faces one, time limits are strict.
Not sure which of these applies to your situation? Book a conversation with our team and we will tell you clearly where you stand.
Sort this out properly
Book a conversation with our team. No obligation. No pressure. Just a clear picture of where you stand and what needs to change.
Not ready to call? Start here.
Download our plain-language guide: Estate Planning: The Will. Written for South Australians, not lawyers.