Same-Sex Marriage – Impact on Wills and Inheritance Planning

Following the nation’s vote in favour of the introduction of same-sex marriage, the bill that will introduce the necessary provisions into law has now been approved by the Senate, reports news.com.au. The same-sex marriage bill will now pass to the House of Representatives for a vote, which is expected to take place next week. 

If the bill passes into law, it will have an impact on many aspects of Australian life. The effect on estate planning and wealth management was recently discussed in an interesting article in The Australian, which highlighted that the new law will provide much needed clarity to the inheritance rights of same-sex couples.

Currently, where one member of a same-sex couple dies without leaving a Will, the remaining partner has no automatic inheritance rights and may have to go to court to prove they had been in a long-term and committed relationship. Once the new legislation comes into force and same-sex couples are able to marry, their inheritance rights as a married couple will be the same as those already enjoyed by heterosexual married couples.

Same-sex couples that do choose to marry will need to be aware that any Wills written before the marriage took place will be revoked by the marriage, says the Australian. In addition, in all states of Australia with the exception of Western Australia, divorce doesn’t automatically revoke a Will. Therefore all couples are advised to seek professional legal advice on renewing their Wills after they marry and again should their relationship subsequently come to an end.

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Szabo & Associates, Solicitors can offer expert advice on a wide range of legal matters, including contesting, making or updating a Will and preparing a Power of Attorney. Please call George Szabo on (02) 9281-5088 or fill in our online contact form.