In Australia, research shows that around half of adults do not have a valid will – leaving too many loved ones at the mercy of default legal rules. That means added delays, stress, and unnecessary costs at an already difficult time. 

Put bluntly, avoiding your will is leaving others to clean up a mess you could have prevented.  

A will is not just about death, or being rich – it’s about control.  

It’s a practical tool that hands power back to you. It decides what happens to your assets and who steps up for your dependants. Without one, the law decides – and it might not match your intentions, especially in modern blended families where finances or relationships are complex.  

A valid will lets you: 

• Decide who gets what - and in what proportions 

• Appoint an executor you trust to make it happen 

• Nominate guardians for your kids 

• Reduce delays, disputes, and legal costs  

• Align your estate planning with other decisions, including superannuation and insurance 

Without a will, these choices are not left open. They are made for you under state intestacy laws, which apply a fixed formula that often applies them poorly - without taking into account complex situations or personal intentions. 

Dying without a will is called dying intestate. When this happens: 

• Your estate is sliced up using default state/territory laws  

• The court picks an administrator, slowing everything down and costing money 

• Assets may be split in ways you never wanted 

• Partners, stepchildren, or dependants can miss out  

• Family dramas become more likely, not less 

Intestacy is a blunt instrument. It doesn’t respect your intentions, unequal contributions or promises. If your life isn't extremely simple, the risk of a poor outcome is real. 

Many people assume that without a will, assets simply pass from one spouse to the other, and then to the children. But that only works if one person survives the other. 

If a couple die together, there is no automatic flow of assets between them. Default intestacy rules can divide assets in ways nobody intended.  

In blended families, this can mean: 

• children from a previous relationship inherit directly 

• assets meant to stay unified get split or sold 

A will allows you to plan for every scenario and avoid leaving it to chance.  

At a minimum, a will should cover: 

• Your details and cancellation of any previous wills 

• Who will execute your wishes 

• How your assets get distributed 

• Guardianship for children under 18 

• Any specific gifts or instructions 

• Legal execution and proper witnessing 

Heads up: A will does not automatically control everything you own. Some assets, like your super and jointly owned property or assets, can sit outside your estate. That’s why a will is one piece of a bigger estate plan – not something drafted in isolation. 

• Read: What happens to your super if you die?

Someone dies without a will, leaving a spouse and kids from a previous relationship. Default rules apply – not personal intent. Outcomes can include:  

- assets being split between the surviving spouse and children in a way no one expected 

- forced the sale of major assets such as the family home to fund those distributions. 

- guardianship decisions left to the courts, not you. 

A will lets you dictate who steps in – on your terms. 

There are three main options for making a will. 

These are cheap and quick, but risky. Templates can’t test your assumptions or flag hidden problems like poor wording, execution errors or failure to deal with complex assets or family structures.

Better than paper kits – especially for simple estates – but beware of false confidence. The platform doesn’t know what you don’t tell it. 

Higher upfront costs, but reduces the risk of disputes, invalidity, or unintended outcomes. A good adviser will ask the questions most people never think of, including how your will interacts with super, trusts, companies, and tax. 

Calling in the professionals is not optional when: 

• You have a blended family or previous relationships 

• You want to leave unequal distributions 

• You have minor children 

• You own a business, trust, or company 

• You hold significant or complex assets 

• You expect a challenge to your will 

• You want to control timing or conditions of inheritance 

Trying to save a few hundred dollars now can cost tens of thousands later. Don’t cheap out on your legacy if any of these apply.  

A will only works if it is legally valid. Simply writing down your wishes is not enough. 

In Australia, a will generally must meet formal requirements to be recognised. This typically includes being in writing, signed by the person making the will, and witnessed by at least two people who are present at the same time. These rules exist to reduce fraud, coercion, and uncertainty after death. 

This is why an email, text message, or handwritten note is usually not enough. Even if the intention is clear, the document may not meet the legal standards required to be treated as a valid will. 

Having a will doesn’t help if:  

• it isn’t valid (eg. If not signed or witnessed properly)  

• nobody can find it 

• nobody knows about it 

• it’s been replaced by another document  

If that happens, it’s like you never had a will at all. Assets get distributed under default rules, delays pile up, and legal costs skyrocket.  

A properly prepared will, stored securely and communicated clearly, cuts these risks dramatically.

Poorly drafted or invalid wills lead to: 

• Legal challenges that drain the estate 

• Family conflict that fractures relationships  

• Unintended outcomes, even if your wishes felt ‘obvious’ 

Courts don’t interpret intent. They interpret documents. If your will is unclear, outdated, or invalid, your wishes may be irrelevant. 

Often, people don’t make a will due to both uncertainty about the process and a reluctance to engage with the reality of death. One way to put that discomfort aside is to treat a will as an administrative task, not a philosophical one. It’s a practical step that can be completed once, reviewed occasionally, and then left in the background. 

If you don’t have a will –  get one.  

If you do – look at when it was last reviewed. Major life events like marriage, divorce, kids, new changes, or super updates should trigger a review. 

A will is not something you set and forget. It’s a living part of your life plan.  

Used right, it’s one of the most powerful pieces of financial planning you can put in place – for you and the people you care about.  

So make a date to get your will sorted. Power doesn’t happen by accident.   

If you die without a will, you die intestate. That means your estate is distributed according to state or territory laws — not your wishes. The court appoints someone to manage your estate, which takes time and money. Assets may be split in ways you didn’t intend, and partners, stepchildren or dependants can miss out entirely. Family disputes also become more likely. A will puts you in control, not the legal system. 

Not always. Superannuation usually sits outside your estate, which means it doesn’t automatically follow your will. Who receives your super often depends on your binding or non-binding beneficiary nomination and the fund’s rules. That’s why your will and your super need to be aligned – estate planning works best when they’re considered together. 

It depends on your situation. If your estate is simple, an online will can work. But if you have a blended family, minor children, unequal distributions, a business, trusts, or expect a challenge to your will, professional advice is strongly recommended.  

A lawyer helps reduce the risk of disputes, invalidity, or outcomes you didn’t intend – which can end up costing your estate far more than the upfront fee.