Estate planning is about more than preparing a will. It is the process of structuring your legal and financial affairs so that your assets are protected, your wishes are carried out, and your loved ones are looked after both during your lifetime and after your death.
A well-considered estate plan can reduce uncertainty, minimise disputes, protect vulnerable beneficiaries, and ensure your estate is administered efficiently.
At Thornton + King, we provide strategic estate planning advice tailored to individuals, families, and business owners with simple or complex affairs.
What is estate planning?
Estate planning involves putting in place a coordinated framework to manage:
How your assets are dealt with on death
Who controls and administers your estate
How beneficiaries receive their entitlements
What happens if you lose capacity during your lifetime
An effective estate plan often includes a combination of any or all of the following:
A will
Testamentary trusts
Enduring powers of attorney
Enduring guardianship appointments
Superannuation and succession planning
Each document must work together. A stand-alone will, without proper consideration of the broader picture, is often insufficient.
Why estate planning matters
Proper estate planning allows you to:
Control who benefits from your estate and how
Protect assets from relationship breakdowns, insolvency, or poor decision-making
Reduce the risk of disputes or family provision claims
Provide for minor or vulnerable beneficiaries
Plan for incapacity as well as death
Without an estate plan, decisions are often left to intestacy laws or court processes, which may not reflect your wishes and can create unnecessary delay and expense.
Estate planning for families
Family dynamics play a central role in estate planning. We regularly advise clients with:
Blended families and second relationships
Minor children or dependants
Estranged family members
Unequal financial needs between beneficiaries
In these situations, careful structuring and clear drafting are critical to reducing the risk of dispute and ensuring fairness.
Estate planning for business owners and investors
For business owners and property investors, estate planning must align with commercial realities. This often includes:
Succession planning for family businesses
Managing control and ownership of companies and trusts
Protecting business assets from personal claims
Ensuring liquidity to fund buy-outs or ongoing operations
Poor estate planning in a business context can place significant strain on both the business and surviving family members.
Planning for incapacity
Estate planning is not only about what happens after death. It also involves planning for the possibility that you may lose decision-making capacity.
Enduring powers of attorney and enduring guardianship appointments allow trusted people to make financial, legal, and lifestyle decisions on your behalf if you are unable to do so. Without these documents, families are often forced to apply to a tribunal or court for authority.
Common estate planning issues we see
Problems often arise where:
Documents are prepared in isolation
Online or generic templates are used
Superannuation nominations are inconsistent with the will
Estate plans are not reviewed after major life events
Asset protection and tax consequences are overlooked
These issues frequently only become apparent when it is too late to fix them.
Our approach
We take a strategic, whole-of-picture approach to estate planning. Our focus is on:
Understanding your family, assets, and objectives
Identifying risks of dispute or unintended outcomes
Structuring documents that work together coherently
Drafting clear, practical, and legally robust documents
Where appropriate, we collaborate with accountants and financial advisers to ensure the estate plan operates effectively in practice.
Speak to an experienced estate planning lawyer
Estate planning provides certainty and peace of mind, both for you and for those you leave behind. If your circumstances have changed, or you have never put a comprehensive estate plan in place, our Wills & Estates specialists can assist.
To speak to a specialist estate planning solicitor, give us a call or submit an enquiry now.
