Accountants are usually the first professionals a family calls after a death. You know the trust structures, the company loan accounts, the SMSF and where the family’s assets are held. You are then caught in the middle: the widow wants reassurance, the children want numbers, and the executor wants you to start distributing. Some of what you are asked to do is legal work with legal risk attached.
Questions that land on your desk
- Who can instruct me now? Your client has died. Until there is a grant, an executor’s authority is limited. Some third parties will not deal with them at all. Beneficiaries are not your client.
- Who controls the trust? The deed decides who the appointor and trustee are after death, and sometimes it is unclear. Distributions resolved by the wrong person can be invalid.
- The deceased’s loan accounts. Large loan accounts in the family company or trust are estate assets. Whether to call them up, forgive them or distribute them in kind changes who gets what.
- The final returns. Including capital gains events on death for foreign-resident beneficiaries, and whether the executor holds back enough before distributing.
- The family dispute brewing in your inbox, and how not to become a witness in it.
How we work with accountants
- You keep the client. We deal with the grant, the will, the trust deeds and the family. You keep the tax, accounts and structures. We do not do accounting work.
- One plan. We map the estate and its structures with you, and agree the sequence of steps: grant, appointor succession, trustee resolutions, loan accounts, sales, final returns and distributions.
- Protection for you. We clarify who instructs you and when, so you do not act on an instruction that is later challenged.
- Language. Many of our shared clients’ families prefer Mandarin or Cantonese. We explain the legal side to them in their language.
Before death, too
Accountants see estate planning problems years before they become disputes: a stale will, a deed with no successor appointor, a loan account nobody has documented. A quick referral at that point is far cheaper than a court case later.
Frequently asked questions
Can an accountant take instructions from an executor before probate?
An accountant can deal with an executor, but until there is a grant of probate the executor’s authority is limited and some third parties will not deal with them at all. Beneficiaries are not the accountant’s client. Clarifying early who can give instructions, and when, protects the accountant from acting on an instruction that is later challenged.
Are loan accounts in a family company part of the deceased estate?
Yes. Loan accounts owed to the deceased by a family company or trust are generally estate assets. Whether the executor calls them up, forgives them or distributes them in kind can change who receives what, so the decision should be made with legal and tax advice and in line with the will.
Who controls a family trust after the client dies?
The trust deed decides who the appointor and trustee are after death, and sometimes it is unclear. Distributions resolved by the wrong person can be invalid. Before trustee resolutions are prepared after a death, the deed should be read together with the will and any company documents to confirm who has authority to act.
When should an accountant refer a client for estate planning advice?
As soon as warning signs appear, such as a stale will, a trust deed with no successor appointor, or a large loan account that nobody has documented. Accountants often see these problems years before they become disputes, and a referral at that point is far cheaper than a court case later.
Chua Tan Associates advises families, executors, trustees and their professional advisers on estate planning, estate administration and estate disputes, in Australia and across borders. To arrange a confidential consultation, please contact our Melbourne office on +61 3 9602 3988 or submit an enquiry. Advice is available in English, Mandarin and Cantonese.
Justin Chua (蔡智勋), lawyer and mediator, Chua Tan Associates, Melbourne. General information only, not legal advice. Victorian law unless stated otherwise.
Tell us about the estate
A short message is enough. We reply in English, Mandarin or Cantonese, and quote fees in writing before any work starts.
简体中文 
English (Australia) 
繁體中文