As your life changes so should your Will

We all lead busy lives.  Our circumstances, and those of our family, change.  As our lives change our wills and other personal documents also need changing, or at least reviewing. 

A recent case (Sutton & Ors v Public Trust [2015] NZHC 1844 [6 August 2015]) highlights what can happen when your will has not been updated to meet a change in circumstances.  It also highlights that you need to be sure that what your will says is what you want.  Does the person drafting your will know your personal circumstances.  Do they know you? 

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Enduring Powers of Attorney - What you need to know

In December 2016 amendments to the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1998 (“PPPR Act”) were passed by Parliament. These amendments will come into force on 16 March 2017. Among the amendments that have been made are regulations to adopt new forms of the enduring powers of attorney (EPA). From 16 March 2017 these new forms will need to be used. If you have completed an EPA using the old forms but you and/or your attorney have not signed them before 16 March 2017, then these will need to be redone on a new form.

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Enduring Powers of Attorney

Enduring powers of attorney (EPA) may be used to cover situations in which a person does not have the ability to manage his or her own affairs.

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Who do you want to control your Estate?

It is estimated that only about half of New Zealand adults have a will. Even where there is a will in place, it may no longer be valid (a will is revoked on marriage or civil union) or relevant to the will-maker's current circumstances. Our busy lives mean many people delay signing and/or updating their will. The consequences of dying without a valid will are often not appreciated.

Family dynamics are much more complicated in our modern world. Blended families, that is where at least one of the partners has a child not biologically related to the other partner, are common. People are re-partnering later in their lives. These factors result in complicated and more frequent family disputes upon the death of a loved one. These can be minimised where there is a valid will and appropriate estate planning.

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Adequacy of Information for Notification Decisions -Discount Brands, Subsequent Legislative Amendments and Case Law

The Supreme Court’s decision in Discount Brands Ltd v Westfield (New Zealand) Ltd [2005] NZSC 17 established the standard of information consent authorities require to make notification decisions under the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA). However, subsequent amendments to the notification provisions of the RMA removed the express statutory requirement for consent authorities to have adequate information, and replaced the rebuttable presumption of notification with a discretion to notify, casting doubt on the continued applicability of Discount Brands.

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Welcoming Back the Well-Beings

As promised by Hon Nanaia Mahuta at the beginning of her term as Minister for Local Government,  the four well-beings have been restored to the heart of the Local Government Act 2002 (the Act).

The Local Government (Community Well-being) Amendment Bill has now been passed reinstating the four aspects of community well-being – social, economic, environmental and cultural into the Act.  This short Bill, whilst harking back to the inception of the  Act, should not be interpreted as restoring the governance of local authorities to 2002 terms.  Much has changed in the interim, and the waves of ‘reform’ applied to the Act by successive Ministers have changed the manner of governance imposed in countless ways. 

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