Memo · Trusts & Estate Planning
Map of a superannuation death benefit nomination against dependants and the estate
Map of whether a binding or non-binding death benefit nomination, if the fund allows one, pays a dependant or the legal personal representative. The lawyer decides. The nomination is not drafted here.
- Kind
- Memo. An internal or advice memo.
- Where it applies
- Australia, Commonwealth
- AI use
- Red You write the text. The tool writes nothing into the document. Where permitted, it may check, clarify or collect data, and anything it checks or collects is verified.
- Law stated as at
- 22 October 2026
- Status
- Maintained. Checked on 22 October 2026 against the authority it cites, for Australia and Commonwealth.
- Version
- 1
- Source
- Written for this library
When to use it
Use when estate instructions include superannuation and the nomination has to be read with the will. Tax treatment of the payment is a separate question. The deed of the fund was not opened.
Used for these tasks
Each task page says how far AI may help with the task and what the lawyer must review.
How AI may be used
AI may copy the nomination and the fund's stated options into the map. The lawyer decides who can be paid and whether the nomination matches the will.
AI may
- Enter the fund name, the type of nomination on the document, and its date
- List the people named on the nomination and on the will, without saying who should receive the benefit
- Flag that the fund rules have not been read
AI must not
- Must not draft a binding nomination or a will clause
- Must not state that a person is a dependant
- Must not calculate tax on the death benefit
The lawyer checks
- The fund rules allow the type of nomination on the document. The ATO page says funds differ
- A person who is not a dependant under superannuation law is reached, if at all, through the legal personal representative
- Dependant for who may be paid is not treated as the same as dependant for tax
- The trust deed of the fund, and any lapsing rule, are read. They were not on the ATO page that was opened
Method: how the Green, Yellow and Red levels are decided. This is guidance for planning, not legal advice.
Read the full text
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- read the whole precedent, with its drafting notes beside it;
- copy it, or download it as a Word file or Markdown;
- add it to your firm’s knowledge base, so colleagues can find it;
- let the AI tools you connect read it from that knowledge base.
The summary, the law it rests on and the AI-use guidance above stay public. Privacy.
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