Wills & Estates
Estate Administration
Dealing with the passing of a friend or family member is a very difficult time. When you are charged with the responsibility of administering an estate, this difficult time can be even more stressful for you.
An Executor is the person appointed in a will to administer the deceased person's estate. The Executor has two main functions. The first is to make appropriate funeral arrangements and the second is to ensure that the terms of the will are carried out.
Executors have a duty to:-- Take charge of a deceased person's assets
- Promptly pay any debts from the assets
- Distribute the estate to the beneficiaries named in the will
At the outset, an Executor should ascertain all the deceased's assets and their values and any liabilities. Assets may take the form of real estate, bank accounts, investments, shares, motor vehicles, furniture, personal effects as well as insurance policies and superannuation entitlements.
Initially, when someone passes away a number of people and organisations need to be told. This helps to finalise the person's affairs and makes sure you can get the help you need. Some of these organisations include: doctors, funeral director, minister, company, Centrelink, employer, superannuation fund, bank, insurance companies, Medicare, post office, ATO, and many others.
Before you start contacting the relevant people or organisations, it might help to have a look around and see if the deceased had a filing cabinet, folder or document case. They may have records that show dealings with any of the contacts listed above.
This will assist you start collating information in relation to the deceased’s assets and liabilities and you can use these records to find out important reference numbers such as a customer reference number, Medicare number or health fund membership number.
We will guide you through the process of administering the estate from start to finish and help to make this time as simple and easy for you as possible.
