Wills and Estate Planning
The Wills Act prescribes strict requirements for a valid Will, and any deviation may render it invalid. Importantly, your two witnesses must be competent and must sign in full at the bottom of each page.
One of the greatest disadvantages of this marital regime is that the couple remains jointly liable for each other’s debt, including debt incurred before the marriage. In a community of property marriage, one spouse has the capacity to bind the
While the law allows you to appoint a family member or friend as your executor, the final decision rests with the Master of the High Court. If the Master deems your chosen executor insufficiently qualified, they may require professional assistance
A Living Will, also known as an advance directive, is a document that outlines a person’s wishes regarding medical treatment in situations where they can no longer communicate for themselves. It allows individuals to refuse certain life-sustaining interventions if there
The child’s guardian has the ability to claim funds from the Guardian’s Fund to cover essential expenses such as school and university fees, clothing, medical aid premiums, food, and maintenance costs. However, these claims are capped at R250,000 from the
The financial and emotional complexities of modern-day blended and extended families can be exacerbated by ineffective estate planning and lack of communication. In many instances, the legacy that loved ones are expecting and what is actually bequeathed in terms of
A Letter of Wishes complements your Will and should be seen as a guide rather than a set of binding instructions. This document provides additional information on personal matters to be considered after your death, such as your preferences for
Building wealth is a gradual process that requires time, strategic use of compound interest, and consistency. Effective investment planning, a highly technical and regulated area of financial planning, involves several interrelated components such as estate structuring, tax planning, risk management,
The costs of uncoupling and running two separate households cannot be under-estimated. Given that a divorce generally involves doubling up on one of the family’s largest monthly expenses (being the rent or bond payments), it goes without saying that a
As a married couple, you will want to ensure that you are both adequately provided for in the event of death or disability, so take time beforehand to put the appropriate level of cover in place. If you or your
