Why you should do a Statement of Wishes with your Will

What is this?

A Statement of Wishes, also referred to as a memorandum of wishes or letter of wishes, is a document that gives the executor relevant information and guidance for performing their role. This includes:

1. Relevant information

Your executor will need information in order to notify relevant parties of the death, correctly identify estate assets, pay debts and distribute the estate.

It is not uncommon for the executors to spend hours or days rummaging through the deceased’s personal papers, hunting for this valuable information.

You can save them a lot of time and stress by storing the information in one easily found location, which is normally stored with your original Will or your copy of the Will.

Instructions for the children’s guardian:

• What school you would like your children to attend and what education you would like them to have;
• Wishes in relation to maintaining relationships with grandparents and extended family;
• Wishes in relation to religious or cultural upbringing; and
• The location where you would like your children to be raised.

Instructions for the trustee:

The trustee holds on trust the beneficiaries share of the estate until they reach the age set in your Will (18 years or older). During that time, the Will may authorise the executor to make provision for the beneficiary’s maintenance, education and advancement in life.

You can include particular wishes such as whether or not the executor should use the funds:

• to pay for sporting equipment, musical lessons, and extracurricular activities;
• to buy the child a car;
• to pay for a computer, mobile phone or other electronic devices for the child;
• to pay for the child to travel and, if so, to what extent;
• to pay for alternative education such as a trade course or internship; and
• to pay an allowance to the children’s guardian or contribute to the costs of raising the child.

It is up to the executor to decide whether they will follow your wishes as set out in your Statement and it can provide invaluable guidance to assist your executor in fulfilling their duties.

Being non-binding also allows the executor greater flexibility. Say for example that in your Statement you say that you want your niece to get your antique dining table and chairs. However, at the date of your death, your niece is living in Canada and the cost to ship the furniture to her would be exorbitant. Your executor can use their discretion to gift the dining set to another relative and make an alternate gift to the niece.

Another advantage of the Statement of Wishes is that it remains confidential. Once an application for a Grant of Probate is made, the Will becomes a public document. The Statement of Wishes does not form part of the application for Probate. Therefore, a copy of the Statement does not need to be provided to the Supreme Court, to the beneficiaries or any other relatives.

Finally, your Statement of Wishes can be updated and changed at any time. It is generally recommended that you update your Will with the assistance of a solicitor who also acts as a witness to you signing the Will. This can incur legal costs and there may be some difficulty in booking in appointments.

Your Statement of Wishes on the other hand does not need the involvement of a solicitor, can be done at any time and does not need witnesses. You can update the Statement however you want, as often as you want.

Even though it is an informal document, it is recommended that you date and sign every page of the Statement, so it is easy to identify the latest version and to prevent any page or pages being fraudulently substituted.

The informal Statement of Wishes is an essential part of your estate plan and a perfect accompaniment to the legally binding Will. It creates a record of your more personal information and wishes and also provides the executor with guidance to perform their duties more efficiently and as you would prefer.