What Does Being a Trustee of a Body Corporate Entail? (Part 1)

When all the trustees of a body corporate resign, the options available to the owners include the appointment of: a) replacement trustees at a special general meeting. b) an executive managing agent at a special general meeting or approaching the Community Schemes Ombud service to do so. c) appointment of an administrator by way of […]

When Is a Trust Not a Trust?

When can the provisions of a trust deed be set aside?  When you don’t stick to the rules. Far too many people pay their accountant or attorney a visit, draw up a boilerplate trust deed, sign on the dotted line, and think that this piece of paper will take away all their tax and estate […]

Properly executing a Will is extremely important

I gave instructions to my attorney to prepare a last will and testament for me as my will no longer reflected my wishes. At my request, my attorney emailed the will to me with clear instructions as to how I should go about signing it. I asked my neighbours to act and sign as witnesses. […]

How trusts preserve generational wealth

The estate duty savings are compounded over several generations Articles on trusts are often aimed at settlors or donors to highlight the benefit of trusts and the role they play in estate planning at the ‘first-generation’ level.  In this article, the author aims to illustrate to second-generation beneficiaries the effect of the decisions their parents […]

Deceased’s will declared invalid, despite clear wishes

The Wills Act sets out the requirements for a valid Last Will and Testament. For a will to be valid, it must be signed and witnessed. What happens if the wishes of the deceased are clear, but the document does not meet the requirements of a valid will? This was the heart of the matter […]