The objective of estate Planning is to ensure that the client retains control over his affairs during his lifetime, while at the same time arranging a distribution of income and capital in such fashion as from time to time meets his requirements, and to ensure that upon his death the estate is distributed in the most advantageous fashion among the persons whom the client wished to benefit.
Some of the important factors to be considered are:
- The financial requirements of a person’s family, both during lifetime and after death, including the availability of liquid assets for the payment of debts and liabilities.
- the likely consequences of inflation
- the nature of the assets in the estate
- domicile and residence
- the protection of assets from family law disputes of bankruptcy
- possible income tax consequences, including current or potential future liability for income tax on capital gains
- the desire to liquidate or to continue a family business
There are four main attributes, or desirable features, of an Estate Plan: Simplicity, Clarity, Flexibility and Practicability.