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Solicitors' Will Ind $150, Couple $250, Enduring POA Ind $125, 2/3 off Tax and Comm Drafting

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Solicitors' Will Ind $150, Couple $250, Enduring POA Ind $125, 2/3 off Tax and Comm Drafting
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Associated[Deactivated] on 04/01/2015 - 15:33 springdalelegal.com.au (217 clicks)
Last edited 07/01/2015 - 14:01

In relation to wills and Enduring Powers of Attorney, this offer repeats one offered in November - https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/168750. I had a good response, though to be honest it still confuses me how a deal about a free online course that you could just access on Youtube has more views than a legal instrument all individuals should have! Please see the previous offer for further information about wills.
In addition to the wills offer, I am offering taxation advice and commercial drafting (for example, contracts or partnership agreements) at one third of the maximum rate I am entitled to charge under the relevant Costs Order (http://www.legalcosts.wa.gov.au/pdf/Solicitors%20Costs%20201… - please see Item 701 - equates to $154 per hour). I will of course give a quote before commencing any work.
As I have said previously, I have vast experience in the ATO and am an experienced solicitor, and while it may be unusual to offer a discount on legal services, there is a legitimate reason - I have had to change States due to family reasons, so am rebuilding part of my client base. The internet offers opportunities for both legal practitioners and clients. Rest assured, these jobs will receive no more or less commitment, nor less legal protection (PI etc).
I will be online over the coming days to answer queries, however please feel welcome to contact me (email preferred).

Just as a quick guide as to the process, I will provide you with a document containing general notes of items to consider, such as your record keeping requirements, pensions, property which can and cannot be bequeathed, information about joint/several tenancy, and execution and storage of your will. If you identify any complex issues here, further discussion may be necessary.
To prepare the will, you need to provide:
- your full name, address and occupation;
- name of your partner (and status eg. wife/husband);
- name and address of someone who could act as guardian of your children should your partner die before you;
- appointment of (preferably) 2 executors;
- gifting wishes, namely:
- any monetary amount to (name and address);
- any fractional division of estate to (name and address);
- to whom you wish to leave the remainder of your estate (after any specific gifts).
Beneficiaries are dependent on that person/persons surviving you - if one does not, the next receives the gift.
A suggested descending order is partner, children (and grandchildren as a substitution), siblings (and
nieces/nephews as a substitution), and charity or trust. Please consider if one child will receive gift if
other(s) predecease you.
- instructions to deal with your digital legacy, including passwords for social media and wishes re closing
accounts/giving photos to family members etc.

Financial Drafting Power of Attorney Probate Tax Will

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  • Slo20 on 04/01/2015 - 15:36
    +2

    I usually just wait for Law week when companies offer free Wills.

    • wisc on 05/01/2015 - 12:08

      online will kit vs personalised will… ?

      • Slo20 on 05/01/2015 - 13:30

        Personalised? Either way I still dictate the outcome.

  • Peck on 04/01/2015 - 15:46

    Why do solicitors insist in keeping your will? I know that they say that it is "for safe keeping" but I suspect that it is so they will get any flow-on business EG amending your will etc.

    • mr_vino89 on 04/01/2015 - 18:57

      well would you rather have the will completed re-drafted at full price or have it amended at a cheaper price? depending on each state, but law firms are required to hold a copy of their client's file for a few years before they can destroy it (i.e. Qld is 7 years). Besides they give you a certified copy of the Will…

      • INFIDEL on 04/01/2015 - 19:10

        As I've complained already, the certified copy of the Enduring Power of Attorney provided by the solicitor was only certified on the cover page, making it legally useless. Cost $100 extra to have this and another mistake corrected, and gain control of the originals.

  • Associated[Deactivated] @ springdalelegal.com.au on 04/01/2015 - 15:55

    Please, do not post uninformed comments as happened with my previous post. To recap: those 'free wills' are not free - the drafter will keep your will and charge large fees for administration. Same goes for the public trustee. And 'online wills' are not written legally.
    I am not keeping your will - the cost is for drafting.
    If you have a personal experience, please share, but there is a lot of misinformation out there, and this is a legitimate deal, for legitimate reasons. Usual price is around double - please, compare!

    • Slo20 on 04/01/2015 - 16:00
      +4

      those 'free wills' are not free

      I never paid for this free will. https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/103066

      • Associated[Deactivated] @ springdalelegal.com.au on 04/01/2015 - 16:07

        With respect, that is an online form. Did you receive estate planning advice?
        All these issues were addressed in the comments in the previous deal. Please read if you are unsure.

        • Slo20 on 04/01/2015 - 16:29
          +2

          I'll be sure to read the previous comments. It was not my intention to hijack your post, just wanted to add my own experiences. Good luck OP.

  • INFIDEL on 04/01/2015 - 16:22
    +9

    Queensland Justice provides FREE Power of Attorney forms.

    I offered to fill these out for my elderly parents. My Father insisted on a Solicitor. $300 later, I discovered the solicitor (our ex-MP) had sent out someone with very little training, who had just printed off the exact same government forms.

    Not only that, even I could see they weren't correctly filled out (space for additional attorneys had not been crossed out, which meant anyone could appoint themselves attorney!). Solicitor insisted on storing originals (which cost $100 minimum charge to retrieve).

    When my Mother was dying - precisely when the document was urgently needed, the solicitor stuffed up providing correctly certified copies for days. Provided copies were useless as they were witnessed only on the first page. This was picked up by free JP service at shopping center. I had to repeatedly visit the solicitor's office & wait, instead of being with my Mother.

    When I challenged the fees, and refused to pay until matter was resolved - it got nasty. My Father was basically bullied into paying full amount. He was so intimidated he refused to take action against the solicitor.

    One bad and expensive experience (considering I competently filled out the free forms for my own Power of Attorney).

    It would saved so many hours over so many days, if I had filled out the online forms instead of an under-trained person, and approved by the main solicitor of that legal practice.

    Of course, this is not meant to disparage this or other solicitors. But it is a warning from personal experience. Get advice if matters are complex. My free online wills & Power of Attorney documents were simple. I store them myself, with my nominated executors & Attorneys, with certified copies stored in safe places.

    • Associated[Deactivated] @ springdalelegal.com.au on 04/01/2015 - 16:54
      +1

      I would agree with all of this - if you are sure that matters are simple, you may likely be able to do it yourself. However, knowing that this is the case often requires a discussion with a professional.
      And like any industry, there are good and bad practitioners. The saving grace here was hopefully the solicitor had the appropriate professional indemnity insurance which should cover your losses in the event you suffered a financial loss.

      • INFIDEL on 04/01/2015 - 17:08

        There was no financial loss identified to claim against. Their attitude just made matters so much worse. I could not even imagine making a claim against them (engaging another solicitor) as they refused to discuss any grievances. We were being threatened with legal action for simply withholding part payment until the matter was corrected!

        It is very difficult to identify a good solicitor. Unfortunately it is only when you need to use the document (possibly years later in an urgent situation), that you know how good or incompetent they really were! That solicitor was recommended, had been the family solicitor, and previous local Liberal MP for years. You have to take their competence on trust.

        An Enduring Power of Attorney document is there to avoid unnecessary complexity when a loved one needs assistance. The mistakes made by the solicitor, or made in their name, made matters so much worse.

        In this case using an online form, following the instructions carefully, would have been so much better. Being directly involved in needing the document to be legally valid, it makes me ensure it is. It would seem there is little incentive except financial to ensure a legal professional take as much care, despite years of training .

        I did not want threats from a Solicitor when dealing with estate and family matters while grieving.

    • mr_vino89 on 04/01/2015 - 19:08

      Just an FYI, for the transfer of property in QLD the POA needs to be registered with the Dept of Natural Justice and Mines - this is why solicitors insist on keeping the original just in case it needs to be registered for the purpose of property transfer etc. usually law firms don't keep their completed files in the office but in a storage place instead - so if you do lose it a copy of your POA, i think it does makes sense for them to charge a retrieval fee. maybe not $100 but a small fee to go get it.
      apart from that, everything you've said sounds like a bad experience.

      • INFIDEL on 04/01/2015 - 19:15

        It was stored in their suburban office. They did lose it for days as well, so I wouldn't rely on another party storing my documents safely. (It was lost in another person's paperwork on a desk.) $100 fee for losing documents!

        We had not lost the certified copies, they were never prepared correctly, so legally useless.

        As booking high-care facilities requires a certified copy of EPA with each application, and certified copies can't be made of certified copies, the original was needed urgently.

        There is no reason why a person can't safely keep their own documents or register those at government departments themselves.

        • mr_vino89 on 04/01/2015 - 19:28

          People lose documents all the time to be honest - it's nothing unusual (i speak generally btw). Yes you are correct anyone can register the docs themselves but not everyone knows that it has to be registered or the correct process of doing so, hence the need for legal advice/service.

        • INFIDEL on 04/01/2015 - 19:37

          @mr_vino89:
          My experience seeking legal advice has not been good. I usually have to advise the legal people! I've seen poor advice and conduct.

          For example, I won an out of court settlement without representation, in QLD against a company. The advice was not to proceed, as the case had no easy to apply precedent. Now others can benefit from my experience, although not as much as if it had gone to court.

      • azndragon168 on 04/01/2015 - 19:17

        I think you mean the Department of Natural Resources and Mines, which is the current department name that the Titles Office comes under.

        For anyone wanting more info, please see: https://www.business.qld.gov.au/industry/titles-property-con…

        • mr_vino89 on 04/01/2015 - 19:22

          yes Department of Natural Resources and Mines - my bad, dyslexic moment :p

  • penthius on 04/01/2015 - 21:51

    Can anyone recommend somebody trusted in Sydney for POA please? or information if you have been down this track, would much appreciate it, cheers

    • INFIDEL on 04/01/2015 - 21:56

      Unless it is complex, look at the free link I posted above.

      • penthius on 04/01/2015 - 22:29

        Thanks for that bruce, I looked at those links but with qld all over the forms it got me to googling lol . For NSW I think its different so tomorrow I will ring our local trustee office and book an appointment, hope its pretty straight forward , cheers ;-)

        • INFIDEL on 05/01/2015 - 01:04

          Yes, unfortunately each State/ Territory has different legislation, requiring a different form :-( Apparently if you work, own property, etc in more than 1 State, you may need multiple Enduring Power of Attorney documents. Something I had not considered.

          General info by State

          Google Free Power of Attorney forms - NSW, WA are pdf
          Queensland
          Victoria

    • Associated[Deactivated] @ springdalelegal.com.au on 05/01/2015 - 16:09

      Just as an FYI re Enduring Powers of Attorney re , I post here an (anonymised) reply I sent to a recent enquiry:

      An enduring power of attorney is where someone appoints someone to make financial decisions on your behalf.
      In answer to your question, you can make one if you are able to make a formal agreement ie. you understand that you are appointing someone to manage your financial affairs, you are able to understand the implications of statements contained in the document and you understand your attorney does not need to discuss their actions with you.
      If mental capacity is a concern, it is wise to have a doctor assess your relative and witness your relative signing the EPA. As level of English is a concern, an accredited translator should also attend the signing and translate the document to avoid any perceived conflict of interest. A clause called a 'readover clause' must be inserted in the POA in this event.
      As to my role, I will discuss with you over the phone the details to be provided, then I will provide the completed forms for you to sign in front of witnesses (may be 2 copies depending on state). You must provide to me the name, address, date of birth of relative, and preferred attorney/joint attorney/substitute attorney in the event of certain (specified) circumstances, plus any conditions on the attorney's conduct.

  • UFO on 05/01/2015 - 12:58

    OP, being that you are based in VIC, are there jurisdiction issues with interstate issues.

    • Associated[Deactivated] @ springdalelegal.com.au on 05/01/2015 - 16:07

      Different States do fall under the jurisdiction of difference Guardianship Acts, for EPAs, and there are minor differences in wills between States due to various different succession legislation, however I practice interstate and these are accounted for.
      In relation to contracts and drafting, any differences are very minor.

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