Asset Protection

With blended families and de facto relationships becoming the norm, you may need to consider how to protect established assets or your children’s inheritances.

Older couples, in particular, may need to consider their future, not only in relation to issues around Wills and Estate Planning but also to allow you to stay in your own home in the event of your partner being placed in care or being no longer competetnt to make decisions. 

Arrangements can be put in place now to allow for those types of contingencies later, to give you peace of mind.

It will be important to talk to your lawyer and plan for possible scenarios.

Asset Protection and Family And Relationship Law

Understanding how a family law property division works will help you plan for the future and give you the information you need before taking big financial steps together with a partner.

If you are planning on moving in with a partner, having a partner move in with you, buying a house with a partner, or  making substantial financial contributions to your partner’s asset, it will be important to obtain legal advice about protecting your and your partner’s interests in these assets moving forward.

Often, people who buy a house together assume that it will be divided 50/50 if they separate. However, this is not necessarily the case. Having knowledge of when the Family Law Act covers your circumstances and how it requires assets to be divided will help you put plans in place for your future and protect yourself from any risk.

Asset Protection and Wills and Estates Law

Further understanding how assets are held and distributed will be important to discuss with your lawyer so that you can make proper arrangements to ensure they are passed down the way you want them to be.

It may be surprising to learn that a Will does not cover all assets belonging to you. Depending on how your assets are held (i.e. is your house in your name, in joint names with someone else, or is it an asset of a company or trust?) will affect how they are passed down to your dependents or loved ones.

If you have children from different relationships or of quite different ages, your obligations to them may differ.

Further, if you have superannuation, you will need to put arrangements in place to ensure it is passed down the way you want it to be.

Depending on your particular circumstances, we recommend obtaining advice from both a family and relationships lawyer and a wills and estates lawyer about your assets, so that you can get the most comprehensive advice about protecting your assets for the future.