On Will.

I was working on a wealth transfer case with a business owner recently. There were some confusions on the function of will.

In simple term, a will is a document to specify who (i.e. executor) is going to take on the responsibility to wind up your estate, pay the necessary costs, and distribute your estate to your intended beneficiaries.

Otherwise the court is going to decide for you. The point is, when this happen, the administration process is usually long and costly. At the same time, disputes will arise amongst family membes, as each has his/her own opinion on how best to settle the estate issues.

Having a will DOES NOT mean your estate can be protected from creditors, or avoid estate duty. In an unplanned situation, all your assets will go through a "probate or administration funnel" to pay for the relevant debts (i.e. tax, estate duty, probate cost, liabilities). Your beneficiaries will only get the balance of your estate. In my experience, it is not uncommon that such balance of estate are not financially meaningful for the beneficiaries. Imagine distritubing $10,000 amongst spouse, parents and children.