Enduring Power of Attorney & Executor of Will - Responsibilties?

Australia's #1 for Law
Join 150,000 Australians every month. Ask a question, respond to a question and better understand the law today!
FREE - Join Now

VII

Member
24 August 2014
1
0
1
Hi, my sister and I have an enduring power of attorney for our elderly father who is in a nursing home. I manage all his finances now. He is deteriorating in health and we wanted to know if there is anything else we should be doing before he passes i.e any forms that we need him to fill out etc. My sister and I are also executors of his Will (made a few years ago - a very simple Will using an on-line form as the template). He leaves his estate to us and our other brother and sister. His home is tenanted and still in both his and my mother's name - she has been gone for about 5 years now. His pension and super payment will cease once he has passed so we will need to still be able to access his bank account funds (rent paid) to maintain his home expenses till such time as we decide to sell it and we will also need to pay for his funeral.

Any help would be appreciated.

Kind regards
 

Tim W

Lawyer
LawConnect (LawTap) Verified
28 April 2014
4,913
820
2,894
Sydney
Well first up, get a solicitor to look at the will.
I am fundamentally opposed to DIY.
And the idea of doing it with a template off the web fills me with horror.

If he is still up to it mentally,* ask him to review it,
in case there is anything he wants, or needs, to change.
For example, the language may not reflect his intentions
in respect of, say, grandchildren born since the last one was made.

Secondly, understand that the PoAs will expire upon his death,
and that until probate is granted and the Executor appointed
(which won't happen unless his DIY will turns out to be valid),
nobody can do any transactions on his assets.

Thirdly, if his wife is deceased, ensure that the paperwork
about the title to the house is current.
If nobody did anything about that back at the time,
then a conversation with the Land Titles folks in your state
may help smooth things later.


----------
* what lawyers call "testamentary capacity".
This can exist even if the testator is physically weak.