How a Letter of Wishes works in Modern Estate Planning

What can be written in a Letter of Wishes?

A Letter of Wishes is part of your family backup plan documents and its purpose is to provide general guidance to the Executor or Trustee of a person’s estate, following their death.

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This simple non-binding letter is written in plain English and designed to help your Executor manage your affairs better. It can more fully explain your wishes for how various actions are to take place in your estate and provide general information that may not be appropriate to put in the Will that later becomes a public document.

It can more fully explain your wishes for how various actions are to take place in your estate and provide general information that may not be appropriate to put in the Will that later becomes a public document.

Pro Tip: Unlike a Will, a Letter of Wishes is designed to remain private and you can easily update it at any time without the need to amend the formal legal documents (such as a Will or Trust documents).

From a simple list of social media passwords to explaining different food allergies, your young children might have, to more complex matters like how a small business was structured; a letter of wishes can help the reader better understand the background thinking on a range of issues.

A Letter of Wishes is usually a private document and not made public like your Will is

While the letter is not legally binding, it can have a strong moral sway with the courts.  A letter of wishes is a very personal document and can deal with a wide range of issues including:

• the names of advisers or family friends who assistance should be obtained in relation to financial planning, accounting services, legal advice, insurance brokerage, stockbroking, religious guidance or other matters
• personal assets, particularly those with sentimental value such as jewellery, collector's items, family heirlooms, particular charities or social causes the Willmaker would like the beneficiaries to consider
• the location of important documents such as deeds, title records and financial information
• wishes in relation to assets that the Willmaker may have effectively controlled during their lifetime, but don't form part of their estate (non-estate assets); for example, assets held in family trusts, Superannuation funds or offshore entities
• provide reasoning to the Executor about why a certain beneficiary is not named in a Will
• any wishes or directions as to how infant children should be cared for
• directions in relation to funeral arrangements and burial, and
• any other matters the Willmaker would like their executors or trustees to take into account.

Getting your modern estate planning sorted brings peace of mind to everyone involved.

It means that you can tell your family and friends, 'if something goes wrong, there's a written backup plan in place, it's funded and here are the name and contact details of the person who can help with the process.

Watch our Introduction to Estate Planning video and then contact us here if you'd like to talk about your family backup plan.

Drew Browne is a specialty Financial Risk Advisor working with Small Business Owners & their Families, Dual Income Professional Couples, and diverse families. He's an award-winning writer, speaker, financial adviser and business strategy mentor. His business Sapience Financial Group is committed to using business solutions for good in the community. In 2015 he was certified as a B Corp., and in 2017 was recognised in the inaugural Australian National Businesses of Tomorrow Awards. Today he advises Small Business Owners and their families, on how to protect themselves, from their businesses.  He writes for successful Small Business Owners and Industry publications. You can read his Modern Small Business Leadership Blog here. You can connect with him on LinkedIn.  Any information provided is general advice only and we have not considered your personal circumstances. Before making any decision on the basis of this advice you should consider if the advice is appropriate for you based on your particular circumstance.