Without a Will your beneficiaries will be identified by applying the rules of the Law of Intestate Succession. This essentially means that people you may not want to necessarily benefit from your estate could inherit your assets.

It's advisable to seek the guidance of a professional to assist with drafting your Will as your Will is the only legal document that deals with all of your assets. Your Will and your financial plan should "talk" to each other. Rather have a specialist draft your Will that is legally correct and in accordance with your wishes.

Your Will remains valid until it is replaced by a latest updated Will. The date that the Will was signed will be used to determine which Will is the latest.

You can send any updates or changes to your Will to your financial adviser or email [email protected]. It's important not to use codicils which are additional pieces of paper containing new clauses to your Will, or making any written changes on your Will document as this could potentially lead to the validity of the Will being questioned.

We can assist with drafting a Worldwide Estate Will however, due to different legal systems in certain countries, it's advisable to discuss this with your financial adviser.

You will always need a Will but you will not always need a Trust. If there are minor beneficiaries or beneficiaries with special needs that could inherit from your Estate, it is advisable to have a Trust in place. Speak to your financial adviser to find out if you need a Trust, and which Trust structure will be best suited to your requirements.

The cost of drafting a Will in South Africa is dependent upon various factors, but mostly relate to the complexity, or simplicity of the document, or what the end-goal is that you as the client would like to achieve. The time taken in the pre-drafting interview, the time taken to compile the Will and the nomination of executor are but a few examples of what the cost of a Will, will be. Our aim at Momentum Trust is to provide all of our clients with a professionally drafted Will that will satisfy their needs. Our clients have the choice to draft their own Wills on our “Client Direct” platform, or to obtain the services of a Momentum affiliated financial planner, or broker, who will offer assistance in drafting the Will on our “My Will” platform. In both these instances, provided Momentum Trust is the nominated executor, there will be no charge for the drafting of these Wills. Alternatively, where Momentum Trust is not the nominated executor or an application form is sent to our office for drafting, there will be a fee payable for this service.

The nomination of executor in terms of your Will is a very important decision and can have a huge impact on the finalisation of your estate. You should make sure that the person or entity is best qualified and has the required experience in dealing with deceased estates and if not, this can have dire consequences in the finalisation of the estate, as well as not attaining the goals that you may have had in mind when drafting your Will. A family member that has never administered an estate should not be burdened with the responsibility as it will not only cause delays but could possibly lead to financial loss.