The importance of a will and how it affects your loved ones

The consequences of not making a will can be both traumatic and financially crippling for those we leave behind, which is why it is so important to ensure that there is understanding and awareness of every aspect of this important process.

In a traditional family structure of a husband and wife, without children from previous marriages, the division of the estate is quite straightforward. But if there are children from previous marriages there is no common-law to deal with this, and proceedings can be protracted, traumatic and above all, very costly. The only winner in this situation is the legal industry.

Put simply, we must not leave things to chance, we must ensure that our assets go to whom we intend by writing a legally recognised document, a will.

Things get a little more complicated if you are living abroad. For example, if death occurs in the UAE, and like me, you are a non-Muslim expatriate then all your assets are frozen, and this includes any joint assets also. So, if our spouse were to die here in the UAE then we will have no access to any joint bank accounts.

And it is most unlikely that any joint assets, such as bank accounts, will ever be retrieved without the presentation of a locally recognized will.

I have personally known of cases where the widow has very quickly withdrawn the money before the account was frozen. But personally I have no desire to put my wife through this game of chance.

In the event of a parent's death, Sharia dictates that it is the next male relative who is given custody or guardianship of the children. And until that person can take custody, the children will be placed under care in an institution.

However, the creation of a locally recognised will allows you to appoint guardians, or temporary guardians, to protect against this particular situation.

When a will can be found the procedure is always quicker. For non-Muslim expatriates the laws are in accordance with their native country, and a will, will always be taken into consideration as an alternative to Sharia. If there is no will then Sharia will apply and the likely scenario is that the extended family will become the heirs of your estate whether these are your wishes or not.

In this case it may take longer to establish contact with the heirs, and problems could arise.

Legal declaration

A will is primarily a legal declaration of your wishes and can cover every facet of your estate. There is also the option to appoint an executorial trustee to administer the estate if there are company or business dealings involved.

The person who carries out the directions set forth in a will can also be a trustee of an estate once the executor's duties have been completed.

But when it comes to substantial estates, it's best to appoint an independent executor who can act in an arbitrary fashion and remove the chance of any conflict of interest.

An executor is usually a specialist in their field, that is, business activity, and thereby the best person to deal with the particular company or business in the event of a director's or shareholder's death and how that death affects the business.

The executor's responsibility is always to the beneficiaries.

If you already have a will this can be amended or re-written, as circumstances invariably change.

However, the law and how a will is written are dependent on your own nationality so I would always recommend taking specific advice with regard to your own country's requirements.

The writer is senior consultant at Acuma Wealth Management, Dubai. The opinion expressed here ishis own and does not reflect thatof Gulf News.