Services > Family, Home & Personal Law
Wills, Probate, Tax and Trusts
 People are living longer than ever before and the need to protect accumulated wealth for your own use, or to pass on to your heirs, is of crucial importance to many people. Even with the recent falls, house price inflation means many homeowners fall into the Inheritance Tax net and with more and more people living outside marriage or civil partnerships, there is an increased need to use specialist advice to protect estates and ensure that those you leave behind are provided for.
Wills
The process for drawing up a Will is generally far more straightforward than most people believe. It is an action that can provide you with the reassurance of the knowledge that, in the event of your death, your wishes can be acted on promptly and in a timely manner, ensuring the distribution of your estate can be carried out quickly and efficiently to provide security for your family.
We can advise on the drafting and updating of Wills to ensure that as your circumstances change, your Will continues to reflect your wishes.
Elderly client services (incl. Trusts, Lasting Powers of Attorney and Court of Protection
Trusts provide considerable scope to pass on assets or reduce tax liability by placing the asset outside of your estate. We can act as Trustees on your behalf or draft Trust documentation to place the Trusteeship with your nominated individuals.
Lasting Power of Attorney
Lasting Powers of Attorney (and previously Enduring Powers of Attorney) allow you to place the day-to-day administration of your finances with an Attorney, if your health is poor or your mental faculty prohibits you from attending to financial affairs. A Lasting Power of Attorney provides the flexibility to continue to deal with matters while you are able or willing to do so.
It is a widely held misconception that if one partner loses mental capacity, provided the other retains capacity, they can continue to use joint accounts. However, some banks and institutions are known to freeze joint accounts when they learn that one of the joint account holders has lost the capacity to make their own decisions. This can leave the other partner in a very difficult position and unable to meet expenses even though there is enough money to meet their day to day living expenses. A Lasting Power of Attorney can avoid these problems.
Our specialist practitioners will explain how these documents can be best used to support your circumstances and will draft them in accordance with your wishes.
* Enduring Powers of Attorney were replaced by Lasting Powers of Attorney in October 2007 but those created before then remain valid
Court of Protection
If someone is no longer capable of managing their own financial affairs and they do not have a valid Enduring Power of Attorney or Lasting Power of Attorney (Property and Affairs), it may be necessary for the Court of Protection to appoint a Deputy to manage their affairs. The Deputy will take responsibility for the incapacitated person's finances under the guidance of the Court of Protection and the Office of the Public Guardian.
We can advise on and assist with the Court's requirements for making an application, including completion of all relevant paperwork, obtaining the necessary medical evidence, lodging the application, arranging the required insurance and implementing the Court's order and any preliminary orders made prior to a full appointment. We can also assist in all aspects of Deputyship general management, including among other things, the sale and purchase of property and deputyship accounts.
Living Wills
This is the term which is widely used but these are not wills at all since they do not deal with a person’s property on death. The legal term is an 'advance directive'.
A living will - or advance directive - is a document in which the person signing it requests that certain medical treatment should, or should not, be given in a particular situation if he is not able to consent or refuse such treatment at the time.
If you wish to make a living will to cover this eventuality, we will be happy to draw it up for you. We always strongly recommend that you discuss it fully with your doctor beforehand to ensure that you are aware of all the possible medical consequences of what you are thinking of including in your living will.
We also recommend that a copy of your living will is sent to your doctor for placing with your medical records.
Inheritance Tax planning
Despite recent house price falls, increasing house price inflation in the UK means that Inheritance Tax is no longer “a tax on the rich”. The threshold for Inheritance Tax is currently set at £312,000 for the tax year 2008/2009, with fixed increases imposed by the Government so it will reach just £325,000, for the 2009/2010 tax year. Inheritance Tax is a flat rate tax at 40%, payable on the value of the estate that exceeds the threshold figure.
A wide range of tax planning measures can be taken to reduce the potential for paying Inheritance Tax.
Probate and administration of estates on death
Our team of Probate specialists provide advice with understanding and sensitivity when winding up and administrating estates. They can establish whether it is necessary to obtain a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration to allow assets to be collected and distributed in accordance with the wishes of the deceased.
Where appropriate, the service includes tax saving advice to ensure the estate is passed on, in as efficient a manner as possible, to the beneficiaries.
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