The taxation implications will be different for each beneficiary, just as no two individuals’ circumstances and structures are identical.  One size does not fit all.  One size usually does not fit anyone.

As the recipient of a bequest, tax is not the only issue; how this bequest sits with your philosophy as a beneficiary and reflects your strategy has rarely been a topic of discussion between adviser and client.  Usually, it is not discussed between benefactor and beneficiary.  It is too often an awkward subject and avoided.  In avoiding the conversation meaning and purpose as well as money can be lost  Until now.

It is not uncommon for beneficiaries as executors to be conflicted.  If there is a sole executor who is one of a number of beneficiaries, decisions made in their best interests may impact all beneficiaries.  If an executor is paid it can easily lead to doubt amongst beneficiaries as to in whose best interest they are acting.  It may be difficult or expensive to avoid the perception of conflict. Professional executors are one way to avoid conflicts.

Bequests like legacy are an active process.  Australians have been shy in discussing these matters.  The time to be coy has passed.  The amount of money that is being passed from generation to generation is so large and the opportunity historically unique that issues will arise. 

Yeates & Co collaborates with your professional providers and those who may benefit from a bequest or inheritance to enhance the longevity of legacy. 

For financial assets to make a difference, there has to be consistency between the client’s legacy strategy and the beneficiaries’ agenda.  What’s the  point of leaving a car to a beneficiary who can’t drive.

Actions may not be required now but consideration needs to be given to actions that may be required in the future.  Clients need to be readied for possible future actions. This is another way we support clients into the future. 

 Underpinning the process is the question of where all this sits within your ethical framework and moral compass.

Do you feel obligated because of some arcane expectation to leave monies to people who you may not necessarily know – or perhaps you do?  Social obligations and expectations have in the past placed great pressure on people.  This sense of obligation is reinforced by outmoded legal frameworks based on historically obsolete assumptions.  Gender has until recently been a basis for discrimination.  The law favours bloodlines and marriage and traditional views of family and relationships.  Clarity and communication are prerequisites if you wish to break out of an old-fashioned paradigm.

At Yeates & Co we are open to more contemporary ways of expressing legacy and the consistency with strategy and current investments.

When we consider the magnitude of the Great Wealth Transfer, there seems little reason to hold on to old fashioned social conventions.  We have the potential to achieve so much more.

The thinking and mindset of the 1950s, 60s and 70s is neither helpful or useful, yet many conventions and thinking are stuck in the past.

Conventional thinking supports the legal industry and not necessarily you, the client. 

Who do I bring on the decision journey, who understands my legacy – my spouse, former spouse, future spouse, my kids?  How do I think of these relationships.  What of those relationships that sit outside conventional thinking?

What is my legacy to society? Have I done a good job? Do I want to be recognised – and how?

How is my view of legacy connected with how I have organised my assets? 

We all have a legacy: do you want to shape it or leave it to chance?  This affects the current ongoing management of assets.  Consistency of decision-making strengthens the possibility of fulfiling your legacy. 

If you are not concerned with your wealth or the material world, be clear on that now.  Otherwise your estate may attract attention. 

Yeates & Co’s Life and Legacy Approach connects your current strategy with your estate planning and can deliver a Section 100 Statement.

Legacy management service comes with its own communication strategy that is articulated to the successors, will-maker, testator, organisations and the many entities that are part of the legacy program. 

As part of legacy advice, Yeates & Co assists you with briefing notes to lawyers, administrators and beneficiaries.  Why beneficiaries?  It is about meaning and it’s about the intimate nature of giving and in receiving a bequest.   

Rather than thinking of money as a transfer, dig deeper and ask about the meaning in the legacy you receive. 

We assist in articulating and communicating legacy.