EXECUTOR/EXECUTRIX – Execut.. what? – Natasha Wood

NKW-booksAll too often we hear of people agreeing to be an Executor for a family member or friend without knowing what they have agreed to, what their duties and obligations are, or what they are expected to do.

An Executor is the person/s you appoint in your Will to administer and distribute your estate upon your death. Your Executor does not have to have any legal knowledge or experience, but they must be someone you trust implicitly to act in the best interests of your Estate.

The primary functions of the Executor are to:

  1. Obtain Grant of Probate, if required. Whether or not Probate is required will depend upon the nature and value of the deceased’s assets.
  2. Call in the assets by arranging for them to be transferred or otherwise finalised.
  3. Arrange for debts to be paid. The funeral, testamentary and administrative expenses and all outstanding liabilities are paid from the Estate. The Executor is not personally liable for the deceased’s debts.
  4. Distribute the Estate to the beneficiaries named in the deceased’s Will.

If you are an Executor with questions regarding your role, or a testator who wants to review your Will, the friendly and experienced Solicitors at Everingham Solomons can assist you because Helping You is Our Business.

Considerations when making a Will, Power of Attorney or Appointment of Enduring Guardian – Natasha Wood

NKW-booksA Will stipulates how a person’s property is to be distributed after their death.

Considerations:

  1. Who do you want to be your executor, that is the person responsible for carrying out your wishes, obtaining probate (if required); and distributing your estate?
  2. Who do you want to receive a share of your estate (the beneficiaries)?
  3. How do you want to divide your estate (who gets what)?

A Power of Attorney appoints someone to act on your behalf with respect to financial and legal matters.

Considerations:

  1. Who do you trust to be your attorney, how many attorneys do you want to appoint and how do you want to appoint your attorney/s?
  2.  Do you want your attorney to be able to use your money for someone else or for your sole benefit?
  3. Do you want to impose any conditions or limitations? eg. your attorney can only act if you are physically or mentally incapacitated.

An Appointment of Enduring Guardian appoints someone to make medical and lifestyle decisions on your behalf once you have lost mental capacity and can no longer make decisions for yourself.

Considerations:

  1. Who do want to appoint as your guardian, how many guardian/s do you want to appoint and how do you want to appoint your guardian/s?
  2.  Are you happy for your guardian to decide where you live, what health care you receive, and what personal services you receive, refuse medical treatment, turn off life support and not engage life sustaining measures?
  3. Do you have any specific wishes regarding medical treatment or living arrangements?

At Everingham Solomons, we have the expertise and experience to assist you with making or updating your Will, Power of Attorney and Appointment of Enduring Guardian because Helping You is Our Business.

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Do You Have Capacity

NKW-booksFor a Will to be valid the person making it, the testator, needs to have the requisite capacity…sound mind, memory and understanding.

This means:

  1. they must be able to understand what a Will is (the nature of the document) and what it does (the effect of the document);
  2. they must be able to comprehend the extent of their property (what assets they have and how they are held) and how they wish to dispose of their property (who they want to inherit it);
  3. they must be able to comprehend and appreciate any potential claims that could be made against their estate (eg family provision claim by an adult child excluded from the Will); and
  4. they must not be suffering from any disorder of the mind that would prevent the exercise of their natural faculties thus influencing their Will.

When making a Power of Attorney, the donor needs to be able to understand 4 things:

  1. that their attorney will be able to assume complete authority over their affairs;
  2. that their attorney will, subject to any conditions or limitations imposed, be able to do anything with their property that they themselves could have done;
  3. if creating an Enduring Power of Attorney, that the authority of the attorney will continue if they become mentally incapacitated; and
  4. that if they become mentally incapacitated, the appointment will be irrevocable without approval from the court.

At Everingham Solomons, we have the expertise and experience to assist you with all your Estate Planning needs because Helping You is Our Business.

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What do you mean I need a licence?

NKW-booksIn NSW it is an offence to drive a motor vehicle on any road without being licensed for that purpose.

NEVER LICENSED

If you drive a motor vehicle on a road without having held a licence of any kind in Australia for the previous 5 years, you have committed the offence of driving while never licensed.

For a first offence the maximum penalty is a fine of $2,200. For a second or subsequent offence the maximum penalty is a fine of $3,300 or imprisonment for a period of 18 months or both.

DRIVE WHILE SUSPENDED OR DISQUALIFIED

Your licence can be suspended by the Roads and Maritime Service (RMS) for example for speeding or accumulation of demerit points whereas licence disqualification is a penalty imposed by the court for a traffic related offence. To drive while disqualified is to contravene a court order and is the more serious of the two offences.

For a first offence the maximum penalty is a fine of $3,300 or imprisonment for 18 months or both and a minimum disqualification period of 12 months. For a second or subsequent offence the maximum penalty is a fine of $5,500 or imprisonment of 2 years or both and a minimum disqualification period of 2 years.

If you have been charged with driving without a licence the Solicitors at Everingham Solomons can assist you in preparing and presenting your case to obtain the best possible result because Helping You is Our Business.

Click here for more information on Natasha Wood.

What Drug Possession Could Do to You

NKW-booksSuppose Johnny has in his possession 6 grams of methamphetamine.

3 grams is the trafficable quantity of methamphetamine. As Johnny has twice that amount, he is deemed to have the drug in his possession for supply, unless he can prove that he had it in his possession for a reason other than supply.

WHAT IS SUPPLY?

Supply has a broad definition and includes:

  • selling and distributing;
  • agreeing to supply;
  • offering to supply;
  • sending, forwarding, delivering or receiving for supply;
  • or authorising, directing, causing, permitting or attempting any of those acts or things.
    (Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW) s3)

WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO JOHNNY?

If Johnny is convicted of supplying a prohibited drug the sentence he receives will be dependent on the range of factors outlined in (s21A of the Crimes Sentencing Procedure Act 1999) and the appropriateness of each sentencing option in holding Johnny accountable for his actions, protecting the community and deterring the commission of similar offences.

The maximum penalty Johnny could face is a fine of 2000 penalty units ($200,000), imprisonment for 15 years, or both.

If you have been charged with a drug related offence the Solicitors at Everingham Solomons can assist you in preparing and presenting your case to obtain the best possible result because Helping You is Our Business.

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What does PCA mean?

What does PCA mean?

NKW-booksUnder section 110 of the Road Transport Act 2013 it is an offence to:

  1. drive a motor vehicle;
  2. occupy the driving seat of a motor vehicle and attempt to put the motor vehicle in motion; or
  3. occupy the seat in a motor vehicle next to a learner driver who is driving the vehicle,

with a prescribed concentration of alcohol (PCA) present in breath or blood.

The statutory penalties for PCA offences are as follows:

For a low range offence (reading between 0.05 and 0.08) a maximum fine of $1,100 and a minimum disqualification period of 3 months.

For a mid-range offence (reading between 0.08 and 0.15) a maximum fine of $2,200 imprisonment for a maximum of nine months and a minimum disqualification period of 6 months.

For a high range offence (reading of 0.15 or above) a maximum fine of $3,300 imprisonment for a maximum of 18 months, a minimum disqualification period of 12 months and minimum interlock period of 24 months.

The penalty imposed by the Court will vary depending on a range of factors, including but not limited to, criminal history/traffic record, the considerations outlined in s21A of the Crimes Sentencing Procedure Act 1999, and the appropriateness of other sentencing options.

If you require advice or representation regarding a PCA offence the experienced solicitors at Everingham Solomons can assist you because Helping You is Our Business.

Click here for more information on Natasha Wood.

Are you being Stalked, Harassed or Intimidated?

NKW-booksStalking, harassment and intimidation are against the law but there appears to be a commonly held misconception regarding what those words actually mean.

The definition of stalking is: intentionally and repeatedly following, watching or contacting another person with the intention of causing that person to fear physical or mental harm.

The definition of harassment is: persistent conduct designed to torment, threaten, intimidate or cause fear of violence.

The definition of intimidation is: repeated threatening behaviour that causes reasonable apprehension of injury, violence or damage to property.

These three definitions encompass a wide range of actions and in turn impose a standard that defines criminality.

For example without the presence of one of more of the above elements, someone frequenting a public place for a legitimate purpose is not stalking; someone you dislike sporadically driving past your house on the way to their destination is not intimidation; and someone acting in a manner in which you find irritating or annoying is not harassment. However, if a person acts in a threatening manner intending to cause fear, or with the knowledge that their actions would cause a reasonable person in the same situation to fear for their safety, that person has committed an offence.

Stalking, intimidation and harassment are serious offences. If after considering the definitions of what constitutes stalking, harassment and intimidation you have any concerns that you are the victim of such conduct, or alternatively if you are being unjustly accused of such conduct, please do not hesitate to contact us at Everingham Solomons because Helping You is Our Business.

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NKW-booksRecover Your Debts, Enhance Your Cashflow and Improve Your Profitability

A business is operating efficiently, services are provided to customers and accounts are rendered but nevertheless the business begins experiencing cashflow problems. The unfortunate reality is, this is not a fictitious scenario. If your debt recovery procedure is deficient you may be on your way to becoming yet another business that fails due to negative cashflow.

The time to stop letting debtors control the future of your business is now. If you have issued an account in which payment is due and has not been forthcoming, take immediate action to recover the debt.

There are a vast array of cost effective recovery options available depending on the circumstances of the debt owed. It is often not necessary to issue a Statement of Claim and commence expensive court proceedings to recover your outstanding debts.

The dispute resolution team at Everingham Solomons can assist you throughout all stages of the debt recovery process. We will work with you to determine the most appropriate course of action and target strategies to suit your circumstances to ensure that your debts are recovered expediently and cost effectively.

You have little to lose and everything to gain. WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

At Everingham Solomons we have the expertise & experience to assist you because  Helping You is Our Business.

Click here for more information on Natasha Wood.