The 5 most important contracts in your life:

Life is a mixed bag

It can present you with excitement, adventure, and opportunities. Something else that may not spring to mind but will be a part of life at many stages is paperwork and legal issues. Sometimes it’s something small, quick and easy to resolve and other times it’s important and requires thought and care. These are the ones you might want a little help with. The Big 5 are the most important contracts in a person’s life:

Will

We’re starting at the end here, but not really. Wills aren’t just for the elderly or the sick. While a will might not seem important to you, not having one or having a will that isn’t clear can cause more grief for those left behind.

A will is a document that must be witnessed and outline who’ll administer your estate (executor) and who’ll receive what from your estate (beneficiaries). It must be witnessed by two people to be binding. Estate solicitors can guide you through the will process to ensure its legality and, in some cases, will store the will to ensure its security.

Binding Financial Agreement

When you get into a relationship, you’re not thinking of the worst and what the outcome would be in that situation. It’s not a bad thing to consider though. If you are entering into a relationship, particularly one that involves large shared purchases and expenses, you can enter into a binding financial agreement (BFA) with your partner.

This is a legal contract that outlines individual assets and debts that each partner had when entering the relationship and how shared assets will be divided if the relationship was to end. This can make a break up easier (and maybe quicker). It’s important that both partners have individual independent legal advice before signing a BFA.

Prenuptial agreement

A prenuptial agreement is a kind of binding financial agreement that is specific to a couple that has the intent to marry. As well as defining assets and debts, a prenuptial agreement can be a way to ask the hard questions of a relationship before entering marriage. As with any BFA it’s imperative that independent legal advice is sought out.

Property Contracts

One of the biggest investments (and debts) a lot of people will make is property. Whether you’re buying an existing property, building, buying off plan, selling or refinancing a property, there will be contracts involved. It’s important to understand your rights and your responsibilities in any transaction and when it is as big as this, it’s good to have somebody to check the contracts and make sure everything is ok and that you’re on track for making it the exciting life step that it is.

Shareholders Agreement

Starting a business? Got something so good that you can’t do it on your own and you’ll need help? Better lay out some ground rules. When you go into business with one or more parties it’s advisable to have a partnership or shareholder agreement. This outlines things like who has decision making power, financial agreements and what happens if a party wants to leave the business. It is advisable to have sought legal advice before signing the agreement. Make sure that advice is independent of any other members’ legal representation too.

There’s going to be a lot to embrace throughout your life, but sometimes you need to get down to the details to get it right. It doesn’t hurt to get a professional eye to look over these details and make sure you get it right, so you can get on with the enjoyment. Need help with the big five? They are the most important contract in a person’s life after all Contact us at CM Lawyers.

Want more information? Click here to read more about Contracts from NSW.Gov