Protecting Your Child’s Inheritance: What Can You Do?
In today’s complex world, ensuring your children’s financial future is more important than ever. Without proper planning, your hard-earned assets could be at risk of disputes, divorce claims, or unintended beneficiaries. In this article, we explore practical legal strategies to protect your child’s inheritance and preserve your family legacy.
Imagine your child facing a divorce without a prenuptial agreement. Your carefully built property could become part of the marital assets, potentially shared with someone you don’t even know or trust. Or worse, if you don’t have a will or trust in place, your assets could be distributed under default laws, which might not align with your wishes.
Parents who do advanced Estate Planning for their children are on the right track. Doing so ensures that you protect your hard-earned assets, giving you the assurance that these various assets will stay in the family and be passed on properly to your rightful heirs.
Fortunately, there are effective legal tools and strategies to protect your child’s inheritance and ensure your legacy remains intact for generations to come.
Common Risks to Your Child’s Inheritance Without Proper Planning
Divorce and Property Claims: Without a prenuptial agreement, your child’s inheritance can be treated as marital property, subject to division. It can become tricky if you don’t have the proper documents. For example, if your child doesn’t have a Prenuptial Agreement and faces a divorce, your properties may end up with an in-law you don’t even like. For this reason, you must consider seeking a lawyer’s help to protect your kids’ inheritance from any unforeseen or unfortunate circumstances. Fortunately, you will find many ways to secure your children’s inheritance, allowing future generations to also enjoy the fruits of your labour.
Intestate Succession: Dying without a valid will means your assets will be distributed according to state law, which may not favour your child as you intended.
Family Disputes: Ambiguities in your estate plan can lead to disagreements and costly litigation among heirs.
Blended Families: Complex family structures may cause confusion without clear instructions, risking assets falling outside your preferred line of inheritance.
Your trusted partner in wills, trusts, and inheritance planning
Create a Trust for Your Children
A trust typically involves three parties, you (the person creating the trust, also known as the grantor or trust maker), the person holding the trust property for the benefit of the children (known as the trustee), and your kids, also known as beneficiaries.
For best results, hire reputable Property Lawyers who can help you setup a ‘lifetime trust’ that lasts for the lifetime of the beneficiaries and immediately gets passed on to the next generation upon their death. You must also ensure your chosen trustee is independent and trustworthy. Assets in this kind of trust are protected against co-mingling in marriage. As such, any future spouse cannot go after the said property. On top of that, it dramatically reduces estate taxes.
Suggest a Prenup Before Marriage
You can establish a Prenuptial Agreement for your children to prevent their future spouse from staking a claim in your assets. This document, executed by experienced Property Lawyers, will be an agreement between your child and their spouse-to-be, itemizing assets owned before marriage. Hence, in case of a divorce, only properties earned jointly upon marriage will be included in the division of assets. To ensure that they will strictly enforce this document even after your death, you must seek legal advice when drafting this agreement.
Suggest a Prenuptial Agreement Before Marriage
A prenuptial agreement can shield your child’s inheritance by clearly stating which assets are separate and not subject to division upon divorce. It is a legally binding contract prepared by property lawyers that sets out ownership of assets before marriage.
Key benefits:
Protects your family’s assets from claims by a future spouse
Clarifies financial expectations for your child’s marriage
Provides peace of mind knowing your inheritance is safeguarded
Ensure that the agreement is carefully drafted and regularly reviewed to be enforceable even after your passing.
Other Excellent Planning Suggestions
Apart from using actual legal tools, you must let your immediate family know your wishes. When your children have matured and reached the right age, you must have a discussion about your estate with them. Declare your intentions and explanations as to why you set things up a certain way. This could mitigate potentially hurt feelings when your assets are eventually divided upon your demise. After all, you are doing everything you can to protect your children, so you need to convey that to them. Speaking about things ahead will allow you to deal with potential conflict while you can still address them verbally and in a sound state of mind.
Communicate Your Wishes: Discuss your estate plan with your children when they are mature. Explaining your reasons helps avoid misunderstandings and family conflicts.
Update Your Will Regularly: Life events like marriages, divorces, births, and deaths can affect your estate plan. Keep it current.
Consider Binding Financial Agreements: Beyond prenups, these agreements can cover other financial arrangements to protect assets.
Plan for Guardianship: If your children are minors, designate guardians in your will to protect their welfare.
Checklist: Steps to Protect Your Child’s Inheritance
Create or update your will
Establish a lifetime or testamentary trust
Draft a prenuptial agreement for your children
Communicate your estate plan to your family
Review estate plan every 3–5 years or after major life events
Appoint a trustworthy trustee
Seek expert legal advice from experienced property and family lawyers
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What happens if I don’t have a will in NSW?
A: Your assets will be distributed according to intestacy laws, which may not reflect your wishes or protect your children’s inheritance.
Q: Can a prenuptial agreement protect inheritance from divorce?
A: Yes. A properly drafted prenup clearly distinguishes inherited assets from marital property.
Q: How often should I update my estate plan?
A: Ideally every 3 to 5 years or after major events like marriage, divorce, or the birth of grandchildren.
Q: Can Platinum Lawyers help with complex family situations?
A: Yes. We have experience with blended families, second marriages, and business ownership.
Why Choose Platinum Lawyers for Protecting Your Child’s Inheritance
1. What services do Platinum Lawyers provide for protecting inheritance?
We offer estate planning, trust creation, prenuptial and binding financial agreements, will drafting, and legal advice on asset protection for future generations.
2. Why should I choose Platinum Lawyers over other firms?
Our team has specialised expertise in both family and property law, ensuring your inheritance plan is legally strong, practical, and tailored to your family’s circumstances.
3. Can you review and update my existing estate plan?
Yes. We review wills, trusts, and agreements to ensure they comply with current NSW laws and still meet your objectives.
4. Do you create lifetime trusts?
Yes. We set up lifetime trusts to protect assets from claims during marriage or divorce and to ensure smooth transfer to future generations.
5. Can you help with prenuptial agreements for my children?
Absolutely. We prepare prenuptial agreements that outline asset ownership before marriage to protect family property in case of divorce.
6. Is it necessary to involve a lawyer for inheritance planning?
Yes. Without proper legal documents, your assets may be exposed to disputes, unintended beneficiaries, or higher taxes.
7. What happens if I don’t have a will or estate plan?
Your assets will be distributed according to NSW intestacy laws, which may not reflect your wishes or protect your children’s inheritance.
8. Can Platinum Lawyers handle complex family situations?
Yes. We have experience with blended families, second marriages, business ownership, and international assets.
9. Do you offer confidential consultations?
Yes. All consultations and information shared with us are strictly confidential.
10. How often should I update my estate plan?
We recommend reviewing it every 3–5 years or after major life events, such as marriage, divorce, or the birth of grandchildren.
11. What is the process to get started with Platinum Lawyers?
Call (02) 8084 2764 or complete our online enquiry form. We’ll schedule a meeting to understand your needs and create a step-by-step plan.
12. Do you offer fixed-fee services for estate planning?
Yes. We provide clear, upfront pricing so you know the cost before work begins, with no hidden fees.
Estate Planning in 2025: Why It Matters More Than Ever
As we move through 2025, the landscape of estate and family law in NSW continues to evolve, making it crucial to update your inheritance protection strategies. Rising property values, changing tax regulations, and increasingly complex family dynamics mean that traditional plans may no longer offer the safeguards your children need. Proactively reviewing and adapting your estate plan this year ensures your assets remain protected from unexpected legal challenges, divorce claims, or tax burdens—giving you peace of mind that your legacy will be preserved for generations to come. For the latest information on laws, taxes, and economic factors affecting estate planning, refer to official Australian government resources such as the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Australian Government Data Portal.
Seek Expert Advice from the Best Lawyers
Suppose you want to make sure your estate gets distributed properly among all your descendants. In that case, you need Estate Planning to ensure your desires are carried out accordingly even after your passing. Thus, it is vital to speak with an expert team like Platinum Lawyers. Our team will sit down with you and help you create a plan that meets your objectives. We can also help you update an old, existing estate plan to protect your assets. To book a consultation, call us at (02) 8084 2764.