Estate planning isn’t only about dealing with your will. Sometimes the best transitional plan is to execute part of your estate plan sooner rather than later. Doing this ahead of time can mean your assets and business interests are transferred with more certainty. However, those family members may not be ready to take over, or there may be other issues to consider.

Suzanne had two children and unfortunately one of them, Anna, had a substance abuse problem. Suzanne’s business was going well and her other child, Dave, was working in it and contributing long hours to see it grow. Her concern was that she wanted to be fair to both children but also thought Dave deserved to be rewarded for his efforts. It was a tricky situation and one which was causing her some anxiety.

One of the options we discussed with her was to transfer the business now to Dave as an early benefit of her will. Her will would then acknowledge that Dave had received the benefit so there wouldn’t be a double up in the future. We also discussed protecting the other child financially with a special trust so they would essentially be drip-fed their inheritance. Of course, this then raises more questions to be worked through. What are the tax implications of now versus later? What are the tax implications of new versus old entities? What would happen if Dave divorced or if Anna got well?

There were many other complications in this situation. Families are complicated, estate planning is even more so. But we can guarantee you that you’ll have peace of mind if you take steps now to minimise your family’s stress when you leave them.