By Rachael Ryan
One of the first duties of an executor is to arrange the deceased’s funeral.
Your executor will wish to make arrangements which align with your wishes, values and beliefs and the cost of which is appropriate, having regard to the size of your estate.
Accordingly, an important aspect of your estate planning is to consider your funeral arrangements and to document your wishes.
You should consider whether you wish to be buried or cremated and the preferred location for burial or for the scattering or internment of your ashes (or to specify if your ashes should be provided to a particular person or divided amongst loved ones).
Beyond these considerations, we have identified a broad range of further issues to be considered and have recently developed a comprehensive Funeral Wishes Checklist to assist our clients with planning and documenting their arrangements in more detail.
Our checklist covers many additional features of a funeral, including the preferred type of service, identifying guests to be invited, music and reading selections, eulogy speakers, pall bearers, arrangements for a wake or other gathering afterwards, and more.
Documenting your wishes for your funeral and providing clear instructions in relation to various related matters will assist your executor(s) and may also help to prevent any potential family disputes over how to best honour your memory.
Planning for your funeral in advance will also allow you to make an appropriate allocation of funds to cover the anticipated costs.
Please contact us to find out more about making a comprehensive funeral plan in tandem with ensuring that your overall estate planning arrangements are both current and optimal.
