Rule from the grave; write a will!

Today I attended an interesting breakfast meeting that focused on estate planning. This was particularly very important for me because it was something I have never set aside time to think about or even act on it and mainly because I always ask the question, what assets do I really have? Advocate Uriri, who was one of the speakers at the event asserted that Estate planning involved the acquisition, maintenance and distribution of assets. So the whole process of that is what estate planning is all about. There were testimonies that were given from women who were put in terrible situations because they (or their deceased spouse or relative) had not planned accordingly and unfortunately, planning of this nature is not as common for most people. I think this was targeted for women because more often than not were are the ones who are left in the cold and with the burden of taking care of the children as well as dealing with in-laws. Rudo Boka, who shared her interesting but inspiring story highlighted that usually the woman and children cry "Ndichachengetwa naniko" (who will take care of me) and not the men. She presented on legacy planning and gave her life experiences to show how important legacy planning is, the importance of unity in family and one point that hit home for me is that death is the most assured event that we know of in our lives but we never plan for it. We also had some legal practitioners explain some concepts and processes that helped demystify the whole issue. So I just had to share this information because sometimes ignorance can put us in unnecessarily bad situations. Do not leave things to chance when planning your estate for the sake of your spouse and children. Empower your children by telling them what is theirs while you are still alive. Sharing it with your relatives also eases the burden for your children as people usually respect the wishes of the dead, particularly in our culture. Do not let your children lose respect for you when you are gone simply because you were not organised. Think about how you want your affairs to be handled when you are gone. Understand the type of marriage you are in (civil marriage vs customary marriage: both have their advantages and disadvantages when it comes to inheritance). Make a provision for the costs of managing your estate so as not to burden those remaining. Do not leave loose ends and update your paperwork as you accumulate your estate, and from what I gathered from the stories, this seemed to be the biggest problem in issues of inheritance, where one remarries and doesn't sort out paperwork from previous marriage, so the last surviving spouse (at least the one who can prove it) is entitled to the estate, sometimes even if the will is in place. Advocate Uriri also said that if you do not plan your estate, the state has a default plan and usually this may not go in line with what you would have wanted. Of noteworthy importance was the Married persons property Act of 1928...ah if you are married,I would suggest you get a hold of this one. This act alludes to HIS, HERS AND THEIRS!!! which to an extent makes me curious about so many misconceptions I had about assets and marriage. Some wills can be nullified because of a subsequent marriage i.e. if you divorce after 40 years of marriage and remarry, and then die the next day, the last surviving spouse is entitled to your estate. Children of the deceased, whether known or unknown, for as long as they can prove the link, are entitled to the estate. I am still to research on most of these issues, but its all very interesting and we just need to manage our estates with imminent death in mind...as harsh as that sounds. But bottom line, usually the law is there to make things easier and particularly in Zimbabwe, the law seems to favour women and children most of the time...I stand corrected. So here are a few tips that the organiser of the event, Rumbi Farirai, gave us: 1. Update your paperwork. 2. Talk to your relatives with regards to what your plan is for your estate. 3. Write a will. 4. Register a trust. 5. Have insurance policies. I am a tad bit enlightened about estate planning and I am definitely going to make deliberate efforts in this regard especially for my little girl...and any other future munchkins!