Building on the success of the first edition (previously titled Discretionary Trusts, Precedents and Commentary), this new edition has been expanded to cover all types of testamentary trusts.

The central purpose of this book is to provide a flexible and easy-to-use system for drafting discretionary testamentary trusts. The system is intended to allow practitioners to deal with what has always been a very complicated and difficult problem: modifying a discretionary testamentary trust precedent to accommodate the widely different family circumstances and testamentary wishes which testators present to the drafter. One testator will want a common option: to provide for a spouse; and if the spouse predeceases the testator, the testator’s children. If a child predeceases the testator, the children of that child will represent that child and take what the predeceased child would have taken. All beneficiaries are to take their inheritance through a discretionary testamentary trust. However, other testators have different and more challenging requirements.

To this end, Chapter 8 contains the Model Testamentary Trust precedent, as well as a clause-by-clause commentary on it. The precedent forms the foundation of every variation of the discretionary testamentary trust, and it is on this foundation that the variations are built by inserting clauses from Chapter 9. Chapter 10 contains a representative sample of widely different family situations for which a testator may wish to provide, as well as including flexible alternative clauses. In addition to providing a modular drafting precedent, the book also covers strategies dealing with superannuation (Chapter 6), family provision (Chapter 11) and blended families (Chapter 12).

Book Review - The Law Society of Tasmania

Important Features

• Authoritative and comprehensive


• Nationwide coverage


• Detailed precedents drafted by experts

Related Titles

Birtles,C and Neal,R, Hutley’s Wills and Precedents, 9th ed 2016

Perkins,M and Monahan,R Estate Planning: A Practical Guide for Estate and Financial Services Professionals, 4th ed. 2015 .