Preparing a Will

A Will is an important legal document that explains what you want to happen to your family, money, property and belongings when you die.

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Over the last 50 years, we have helped thousands of people living in the north eastern suburbs of Melbourne to prepare their Will – and keep it updated to reflect major life changes (like marriage or divorce) that might affect their wishes.

You need a Will if you:

  • have children under the age of 18
  • own your home, business or investment property
  • have shares, investments or money in the bank
  • own possessions that you want to pass on like a car, jewellery or art.

Preparing a legally-valid Will is the best way to protect your family and ensure your wishes are clear and can be carried out. Without a Will, these decisions are left to a court appointed administrator, who will be working without any guidance from you.

How we help

Finalising your divorce is relatively straight forward process:

Our experienced lawyers will guide you through the process of creating a legally-valid Will that reflects your wishes and what is best for your family.  

As part of this process, we also recommend you set up Powers of Attorney to appoint a trusted family member or friend to act on your behalf (for example, to access your bank accounts, give directions about your medical treamtment and, if necessary, sell assets on your behalf) if you are unable to do so through illness or accident.    

It is important to understand that your Will only deals with the distribution of assets that you personally own. The distributution of joint assets (like real-estate), superannuation and insurance payouts and any assets in a family trust are not covered by your Will. Careful estate planning will ensure these assets are distributed according to your wishes. 

Estate planning is all about making sure your all of your assets are passed on to your chosen beneficiaries in the best, most tax-effective way possible. 

At Tonkin Legal, we firmly believe there is no such thing as a ‘simple’ Will. 

That’s because everyone’s situation and family dynamics are different.  We are also not big fans of ‘off-the-shelf’ Wills that you can buy from the newsagent for the same reason. “Off-the-shelf” Wills are open to being contested and are often rejected by the Supreme Court.

Download our Guide to Wills, Powers of Attorney and Estate Planning for more helpful information!

1. Meet with us

We start this process by organising a meeting with one of the lawyers from our Wills and Estate Planning team.  If you have a partner, it is a good idea for both of you to attend this meeting so we can prepare both of your Wills and Powers Of Attorney at the same time. 

This meeting is all about getting to know you and your personal situation.  

We will gather information about your partner, children and family.  We will talk about who you would want to look after your children and plan for a variety of future scenarios.  We will discuss who you would like to appoint as the Executor of your Will. This person is responsible for following the instructions in your Will after you die.  We also talk about who you want to make personal, financial and medical decisions on your behalf if you are incapable of making them due to illness or accident.

You need to bring the following items to the meeting:

  • list of your assets and liabilities.
  • list of who you want to benefit from your estate.

This first meeting will cost $450 (including GST) and takes about an hour.  

2. Prepare a quote 

Based on the discussions about your personal situation and information gathered at our first meeting, we will then prepare a cost estimate which clearly explains the cost of preparing your Will and Powers of Attorney (if required).  

3. Prepare documents

If you are happy to proceed, we will then draft your Will, taking into consideration everything we discussed, and send it to you for review.  If you have any changes, we incorporate these. We also create your Powers of Attorney.

4. Signing meeting

We then organise a final meeting, where you sign your Will and Powers of Attorney.  We will securely store these documents safely for you.  We provide you with a copy of these important documents for your files.  It is a good idea to also give a copy to your Executor and your appointed decision-maker(s). 

What Our Clients Say

Good morning Charlie, I'd like to thank you and your team for your continued support and professional approach during what amounts to be a tough time.

Robert

Lymington (Tasmania)

Thank you so much Ruby for your support. I have had no problem with recommending you and the firm to others during our time together and will continue to do so in the future.

Stephen

Heidelberg

Just wanted to say big thank for everything over the last few months. Your support has been fantastic, I’ve felt heard and respected through the entire process. So relieved to finally be able to close that chapter.

Brianna

Thornbury

Ruby was fantastic, she made the whole process easy with no stress.

Ron

Viewbank

Great timely service and everything explained clearly.

Sara

Doreen

Shelley was very easy to deal with, and always had the answer for any questions or queries we had.

Daniel & Kiera

Whittlesea

Ruby was courteous and professional during the entire will process. Ruby took the time to understand our life situation and have a few laughs during the process. We thoroughly enjoyed Ruby’s approach of being professional but not stale and dull.

Grant & Robyn

Maribyrnong

Everything was done efficiently. Staff were all very friendly and helpful.

Kerri

Montmorency

Suzanna was extremely helpful and patient under difficult circumstances.

Leigh

Lower Plenty

Thanks Charlie. Your friendly manner, responsiveness and professionalism was much appreciated.

Rose

Rosanna

Thank you again for your very compassionate and professional handling of the signing. It's not easy by any means but you are making it so much better for us.

Noah

Watsonia

“Thank you St John for your great work and professionalism in finalising my divorce. It was great and after so many years it has taken to get to this place, it is still quite unbelievable that it has now been finished.”

Ava

Heidelberg

Everything gets sorted so quickly and everyone is so friendly.”

Pauline

Toorak

Suzanna and Shelley, acknowledged and thank you sincerely for all you have done, not only over the last few months for settlement, but also over the past two years….Your professionalism, thoroughness and exceptional communication has been deeply appreciated especially given I have been overseas for 80% of this process. Wishing you continued success in your business. I’m proud to say my lawyers and conveyancers are Tonkin Legal Group.

Mark

Fitzroy North

Hi Charlie, a word of thanks for the assistance and guidance provided by Tonkin Legal and in particular by yourself in settling my mother’s estate, throughout drawn out [to me] processes over the past two years. Your commitment and persistence in working through those processes on our behalf is truly appreciated.

Lindsay

Melbourne

Our Team

Ruby Heath

Partner

Ruby Heath is a Partner at Tonkin Legal Group.

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Charlie Robinson

Partner

Charlie Robinson is a Partner at Tonkin Legal Group.

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Ash Soklevski

Lawyer

Ash is currently working as a Lawyer in our Wills and Estates & Family Law teams.

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Our Trusted Network of Professional Advisors

CCB Accountants
Herman & Berry
MFM GROUP
Thompson Financial Services
Vista Financial Solutions

A Helpful Guide to Wills and Estates

Need to make a will and plan your estate? Our free guide to wills and estates is here to answer your questions and get you started!

Download our Guide to Wills, Powers of Attorney and Estate Planning for more helpful information!