South Australia wants more people to talk about it.
Medical breakthroughs and public health improvements have greatly increased life expectancy.
Other medical and technical developments have enabled many people to remain active for longer, giving them a better quality of life, as well as a longer life.
The flipside of this is the ballooning cast of care, accomodation and medications for the over 70’s.
As we get older, we need to have in place some important legal documents to protect ourselves, our family and our assets. If you wait too long, it could be too late.
On March 31, 2005, American woman Terry Schiavo passed away, after a 15 year legal battle over her fate. During this time, her case became an international lightning rod for the discussion over end-of-life issues.
In brief, Terry had collapsed in her home on February 25, 1990. When the ambulance arrived, she was not breathing and had no pulse.
Animals who outlive their owners face uncertain fates.
Sometimes a family member or friend cares for your pet, but most go to a shelter, are euthanised, or simply let out the front door.
Of these, very few are adopted. Create a trust and leave enough funds in your Will to help ensure a safe future for your animals.
The traditional funeral is becoming less common in Australia and the UK, with only 10% of people now wanting a religious funeral.
One in three prefer to hold a “family-only” life-celebration party rather than a large funeral. Another third do not want any ceremony at all and, for those who do, the use of pallbearers to carry coffins has dropped by 80%.
These statistics are based on a survey of funeral directors from over 500,000 funerals in the last five years and the views of 4,000 adults.
Major bank’s belated discovery of stored Wills could trigger estate disputes
It has emerged that one of the largest and oldest banks in the world – Lloyds Bank – has discovered a cache of thousands of stored Wills in its ‘Safe Custody’ service.
The service was closed to new customers in 2011, but in 2019 the bank discovered that the approximately 190,000 papers still stored there included about 9,000 Wills. Some of the envelopes could not be matched to Lloyds’ customers.
Do you have a family member that can’t be trusted to responsibly deal with money?
Maybe they are too young or too old to maturely handle a substantial inheritance. Perhaps they have mental or psychological illnesses.
Perhaps they are addicted to illicit drugs, gambling or alcohol. Or maybe they’re just a fool with money, and are too impulsive to ever save or stick to a budget.
Approximately 10 per cent of older Australians are victims of financial or psychological abuse each year, typically from family and friends pressuring them to provide financially for others.
Many elderly parents do not report their concerns, out of a sense of family loyalty, or feelings of guilt, shame or embarrassment.
As we get older, we tend to be more trusting – particularly of those we have known for a long time.
The thought of creating an estate plan can at first appear intimidating, but if you break down the process into smaller pieces, it will make it more manageable. By taking it step by step, it’s more likely that you’ll be comfortable getting started with the process.
Deciding what goes into an estate plan that fits your life and accomplishes your goals should be done with the help of a lawyer who specialises in estate planning.
The newsfeeds are full of horrific stories about residents in nursing homes being mistreated, ignored, threatened, assaulted and abused.
Another Royal Commission is taking evidence around Australia. Between 6 per cent and 20% of elderly Australians are abused by someone they trust according to recent research.
That won’t happen in my family
Are you sure about that? Even wealthy celebrities are not immune against elder financial abuse.
Every adult Australian needs a Will, but this often gets overlooked. Confronting our own mortality and making an estate plan makes some people uncomfortable.
There’s no law that says you must have an estate plan—but there are laws in every State and Territory in Australia that determine how your property is distributed if you don’t have a Will.
So, are you happy to let the Government decide who gets your assets?