When Liam Payne sang"nobody can drag me down" we didn't think he was talking about his aversion to sitting down and drafting his estate planning documents. However, after leaving no valid will on his death, the distribution of the former One Direction star's fortune is up to the rules of intestacy. But what does it mean to die'intestate', and what would happen if you fail to execute avalid will before youdie?
The entire world was in shock and fans were devastated when news broke in October 2024of the sudden passing of Liam Payne after falling from ahotel balcony inArgentina.
It was later found that Payne had failed to prepare and sign avalid will, meaning that he died'intestate'. Under section102of the Succession Act 2006(NSW),'intestate' is defined as'a person who dies and either does not leave awill or leaves awill but does not dispose effectively by will of all or part of his or herproperty'.
This led to his former partner and mother to his only child, Bear, Cheryl Tweedy, commonly known as Cheryl Cole, along with music industry lawyer, Richard Bray, to be appointed as co-administrators of Payne's estate. However, Tweedy and Bray's authority over the distribution of the estate assets is extremely limited, having only been given authority to manage the estateassets.
In accordance withUKsuccession law, the child of adeceased person dying intestate will inherit the entirety of the estate, if there is no surviving spouse or de facto partner. This means that the entirety of Payne's estate valued at USD $32.2million (approximately AUD $50.3million) will be placed in trust for Bear as he is still aminor.
Order of intestate distribution in New SouthWales
But what about New South Wales succession law? If you die intestate in New South Wales, this triggers astrict order of distribution governed by the Succession Act, which is dependent on the family situation of the deceased person. Part4.3of the Succession Act outlines the order in which an intestate is to be distributed.
Spouse or de factopartner
If the deceased person is survived by aspouse or ade facto partner, the entire estate is given to the spouse or de facto partner if that spouse is also the parent of the deceased's children (or there are no children of the deceased). If the deceased is survived by children from aprevious relationship, the estate is divided between the spouse/de facto partner and the deceased person's children. The spouse/de facto partner receives the personal effects, astatutory legacy (currently approximately $580,000), and half of the residue of the estate, while the other half is shared among the deceased person's survivingchildren.
Children
If the deceased person is not survived by aspouse or de facto partner, but has surviving children, the entire estate will go equally among the surviving children. This was the case for the distribution of Liam Payne'sestate.
Parents
If there is no surviving spouse, de facto partner or children of the deceased person, the estate will go to the deceased's parentsequally.
Siblings
If the parents of the deceased person are unable to inherit, siblings of the deceased are next in line to receive the deceased's estate in equalshares.
Extendedfamily
If all the abovementioned options are unavailable for distribution, the next course of action would be for distribution to the extended family of the deceased person. This follows nieces or nephews, to grandparents, to aunts and uncles, or even cousins of the deceasedperson.
The State
If no eligible relatives are found to distribute the deceased person's assets, the estate is claimed by theNSWGovernment.
Although you've got to"live while you're young", that doesn't mean that your estate planning should be put on the backburner for when you get older. Life is unpredictable and the matter of Liam Payne's estate is areminder that no matter how old you are, ensuring your estate affairs are in order is important, especially if you have an estate of significant value. If you want to ensure that your testamentary wishes are honoured and those you care about are accommodated for following your death, making sure that you have avalid will in place should be high up on you to dolist.
For further information please contact:
Angela Harvey, Partner
Phone: +61 2 9233 5544
Email: axh@swaab.com.au
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
