Trustee Company Acknowledges Value Of Advertising

Manawatu Times, Volume LVI, Issue 7069, 31 January 1933, Page 10

Trustee Company Acknowledges Value Of Advertising

EDUCATING PUBLIC ON MAKING OF WILLS.

An illustration of how advertising can assist public welfare and be of important educational value was recently given by Mr B. F. Ward, manager of Tike Guardian Trust and Executors’ Company of New Zealand Limited. 11 As you know, ’ ’ stated Mr Ward, "Tho Guardian Trust and Executors’ Company is a corporate Trustee organisation and much of our business comes as the result of being appointed in wills to act in the capacity of trustee and executor. "It is generally recognised in the legal profession and trustee organisations that many wills in existence today are quite inadequate in light of changed positions. Unfortunately, few of tho general public realise this. "It is possible for a man, who takes every other step to insure the future of his family and who, indeed, makes it the major part of his life’s work to build up an estate on solid foundations for his family’s benclit, to jeopardiso their future, through failure to revise his will in view of changing conditions of either his finances or his family. "For instance, in the case of ono will which recently came into effect, the testator, who was once a man of laTge means, specilied three or fouT bequests at the time his will was drawn and the residue to his next of kin'. Tho prior bequests approximated one-ffth of tho value of the estate at the time the will was anade. With the passage of years, however,- ;;omo of tho assets in the estate had materially diminished and some even vanished. It was discovered that after the specific bequests were met there would not be one peuiny available for tho testator’s family, and this, of cogrse, necessitated an appeal to tho Court for adjustment. "Unfortunately, this is by no moans uncommon. In actual practice it frequently occuts that a will, through lack of revision, completely upsets tho testator’s intention. Hence the need for educational advertising. "Now this is where advertising is of benefit to the nubias. She jauardjag

Trust realises that there are many wills of this nature in safe custody, which wo may be called upon to act in any of our various capacities. "It is therefore our duty to use the advertising columns of tho Press to acquaint tho public of the need for will revision. Not only does this assist the testator and his beneficiaries, but it also simplifies the pioblem of administration, for no trustee would welcome taking over an estate,where the testator’s dependents are likely to be deprived of their inheritance through the testator’s own neglect to revise his will. The Guardian Trust educational campaign stresses the necessity for periodical will revision, and already indications point to satisfactory results. "We arc thoroughly convinced of tho value of newspaper advertising for out purposes. It seems to us that its uses are innumerable and it has proved the most economical way of getting our message .to .the pubfe;,^