Can I use ChatGPT to write my Will?

March 20th 2024 | wills and probate
I saw a comment online recently, stating that Wills drafted by AI, using functions such as ChatGPT are the new wave of homemade Wills. As previously covered by myself and my colleague Alex Stanier, homemade Wills have resulted in some of the most complex and costly estates to administer, due read more...

I Don't Want It! How to Deal with an Unwanted Trust

February 21st 2024 | trusts
Trusts have become more popular as an everyday tax and succession planning tool. Check out these blogs for some of the reasons why you actually might want to include trusts when undertaking estate planning: Quick Guide to Trusts Life interest trusts :  Personal Injury Trust However, as a general rule, read more...

Do You Pay Inheritance Tax On A Jointly Owned House?

December 12th 2023 | wills and probate
The answer is: maybe. Owning property jointly with someone means that you do not need a grant of probate in order to transfer the title to the survivor when one person dies. This is known as the law of succession, which sets out who inherits property. Jointly owned property (held read more...

Can I Get Probate with a Foreign Will?

December 1st 2023 | wills and probate
The simple answer is yes (usually), however any estate including international elements will always have a certain level of complexity. Firstly, you need to determine where the assets of the deceased are. If the deceased has prepared a foreign Will, this will generally be because they held assets in that read more...

Should I Put My House Into Trust?

October 11th 2023 | estate planning
Putting your home in trust, and whether or not that is a good idea is something that has been mentioned in a few of our earlier blogs, but it is such an involved topic that it really needs to be discussed in a stand alone blog. As mentioned in earlier read more...

Intestacy- Statutory Legacy for Spouse

August 11th 2023 | wills and probate
The intestacy rules set out who inherits a person's estate where they have died without leaving a valid Will (known as dying intestate). The beneficiaries of the estate vary depending on whether or not the deceased was married and also based on whether or not they had children, regardless of read more...

What are Life Interest Trusts?

July 25th 2023 | wills and probate
There are a few different types of trust, most of which have existed for at least a century with minor tweaks to reflect changing tax treatments or legislation. However, some trusts are being paraded around as new miracle ways to avoid care fees or inheritance tax. In most cases this read more...

Marriage, Divorce, and Wills

July 17th 2023 | wills and probate
Getting married or divorced are big changes in your life. But did you know that both can also affect your Will? Marriage Under s18 Wills Act 1837, any marriage after the date on which a Will is made would act to revoke that Will, unless the documents is expressly stated read more...

Taxes on Lifetime Gifts

June 20th 2023 | estate planning
If you are considering making a gift to someone, you need to consider the various tax implications that can arise. These can in some cases impact whether or not you are in a position to make the gift at all. Inheritance Tax Most people are aware of the seven year read more...

Can My Attorneys Act In My Trustee Role?

May 25th 2023 | powers of attorney
Attorneys act on someone else's behalf, either on their instructions or in their best interests where that person has lost capacity. It is important to note that there are different types of power of attorney. The type that most people are familiar with is Lasting Powers of Attorney (or Enduring read more...

Lasting Power of Attorney- Update

May 18th 2023 | estate planning
There has long been a subtle issue for attorneys acting under a financial power of attorney. This centred around the fact that attorneys are not permitted to delegate their discretion, as they are managing someone else's funds. The pattern of thought has historically been that they should actively manage these, read more...

Should I Give Away My Home To Save Inheritance Tax?

March 22nd 2023 | estate planning
For most people, their home is their most valuable asset. With the average house price in Buckinghamshire topping £520,000 (and higher in London) it is unsurprising that people often consider giving away their homes during their lifetimes to reduce their inheritance tax liability. There are however some very real risks read more...

Can I Write My Own Will?

February 23rd 2023 | wills and probate
A very hesitant yes, but I wouldn't recommend it, and that's not just because it's my job to write wills. There are some real risks to preparing a will at home. Firstly,  you are usually trying to distribute your most valuable assets amongst those you love. If there are issues read more...

Should I Take Out A Prepaid Probate Plan?

February 2nd 2023 | wills and probate
In short, no. These plans have been cropping up more frequently over the last few years, with companies offering individuals the option to buy a plan during their lifetime to cover the costs of administering their estate. Professionally, I have always had issues with this: firstly, the level of work read more...

How Often Should I Review My Will?

January 19th 2023 | wills and probate
Once you complete a will, it is very tempting to put it in a draw and never look at it again (and in fact many people do). However things change, so how often should you review your will? Our advice is generally that you should look at your wills every read more...

The Court of Protection Goes Digital

January 3rd 2023 | court of protection
On the 1st January 2023, the Court of Protection updated their procedures to enable applications for financial deputyships to be completed online. Based on the latest figures applications for financial deputyships make up 40% of all applications made to the Court of Protection. For the most part they are straightforward read more...

The Role Of A Certificate Provider

November 22nd 2022 | wills and probate
Solicitor who certified LPAs “as a favour” is fined £6,000. Who knew there could be so much risk in acting as a certificate provider? Well, as the linked article shows, one solicitor found out the hard way. I find this such a strange thing for a legal professional to have read more...

A Matter of Trust- The Obligations of a Trustee

October 5th 2022 | trusts
Trusts are generally poorly understood by members of the public (and many professionals) and so it is no surprise that few people actually understand what it means to be a trustee, and the obligations that this entails. To start with, it is important to note that someone acts as a read more...

Remember a Charity Week

September 7th 2022 | estate planning
Things are a bit grim out there. We are all tightening our belts and watching as costs of daily essentials skyrocket. Time will tell what our new Prime Minister can do to help people with their everyday costs and expenses, however experience has told us that, when times get hardest read more...

The Residential Nil Rate Band – Not All It’s Cracked Up to Be

August 18th 2022 | estate planning
The residential nil rate band was introduced in 2017. At the time, it was hailed as the additional inheritance tax allowance needed to combat rising house prices which were tipping average estates into the grips of the inheritance tax regime. Unfortunately the allowance has never been the easiest thing to read more...

How do I change my Will?

May 26th 2022 | wills and probate
People often wonder the best way to update or change their Wills. There are in fact some firm dos and don’ts in this regard. The formal requirements for a validly executed Will, or amendments to a Will, are set out in the Wills Act 1837 (yes, that old). This states read more...

What Do You Do When Someone Dies?

April 14th 2022 | wills and probate
When someone dies, it can lead to a lot of confusion. Being a probate solicitor I often get a call within a day or two of someone's passing, from friends and family, asking what they should be doing. Here is a short guide to the steps you should take immediately read more...

Santa Baby: Gifting Allowances this Christmas

December 21st 2021 | estate planning
It’s that time of the year again so let's talk gifting allowances. For those of you who are feeling generous during the festive season, or know someone with a hefty Christmas Wish List, then the amount gifted over the Christmas period can have an impact on the inheritance tax allowances read more...

Can an Attorney or Deputy See Medical Records?

November 15th 2021 | powers of attorney
The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) has released new guidance to the NHS regarding requests by deputies or attorneys to see the donor's medical records. The OPG have stated that access should be granted to this information if the person making the request 'needs the information to act properly' read more...

Why Everyone Should Consider Powers of Attorney

November 1st 2021 | powers of attorney
Lasting Powers of Attorney offer an enormous advantage to those who ultimately need them and too many of us will need them for too many different reasons. They are an invaluable and flexible tool that can be tailored to suit most people’s circumstances. For context, there are currently three different read more...

Wills - A Question of Privacy

September 28th 2021 | wills and probate
It is very common for solicitors to receive calls from family, asking about the Wills of parents, spouses or more distant relations. It is also common for clients to ask when their family will be able to see a copy of their Will. Many people believe that, once you prepare read more...

Remember a Charity in your Will Week

September 10th 2021 | wills and probate
This week is Remember a Charity in your Will Week. For most of us it can be pretty easy to overlook the reliance that our society has on charities and those who work in the charitable sector: whether it is The British Heart Foundation or Cancer Research UK who undertake read more...

Gift Exemptions: Inheritance Tax

August 31st 2021 | estate planning
OK, let's talk gifting allowance for inheritance tax. This is a topic that I see a lot of clients get very confused about, whether it's for their lifetime planning or as executors completing an IHT400 where there have been gifts during the deceased’s lifetime.  There were 4 ways in which read more...

Can You Resign As An Executor?

August 16th 2021 | estate planning
The role of an executor is not something to be taken lightly. In an earlier blog I discussed some of the pitfalls that can arise for executors and the risks associated with the role .  However, what people often fail to realise is that, once you start to act as read more...

Advice for Executors: Estate Accounts

July 14th 2021 | wills and probate
All executors are required to keep accurate and detailed accounts setting out the assets that form part of the estate, details of estate debts and confirming what steps have been taken with assets throughout the estate administration. The accounts also set out how the estate assets have been, or are read more...

What is Probate?

May 17th 2021 | wills and probate
As a person who deals with estates constantly, I often take it for granted that individuals understand what it means to “apply for probate” and why you may need to do this. In case you, like many others, have ever been confused by this concept, here is a brief explanation: read more...

Personal Injury Trusts: Who, What and Why?

March 30th 2021 | trusts
There are a wide range of reasons why trusts are still used in modern society (and not all of them have to do with tax). One particularly useful, and often overlooked, type of trust is a personal injury trust. This is a trust which is specifically set up to receive read more...

Solicitors - The Stereotype vs Reality

March 18th 2021 | wills and probate
To all the lay folk out there, what do you picture when someone tells you they are a lawyer? Is it the man in an expensive suit, working in swanky offices who charges you a small (or not-so-small) fortune? Or maybe the criminal lawyer of many an American movie, banging read more...

Making Gifts Under a Power of Attorney

March 12th 2021 | court of protection
Powers of Attorney (whether they be Lasting Powers of Attorney for Finance, Enduring Powers of Attorney or Court of Protection Deputyship Orders) give an individual the authority to access a person’s financial assets. This includes their bank accounts and investments as well as the authority to sell, transfer or mortgage read more...

Should I Apply for Probate Personally?

January 21st 2021 | wills and probate
It has always been possible to apply for probate as a private individual, however the prospect of completing tax forms and muddling through the legal jargon of Wills has meant that most executors seek professional assistance. However, in the recent times there has been a steady increase in individuals choosing read more...

Lasting Powers of Attorney - The Slippery Slope of Digitisation

December 4th 2020 | powers of attorney
There has been an active step by the Office of the Public Guardian towards digitising the process of creating Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs). This has been met with mixed reviews, with solicitors in particular showing general concern about the changes being made. As of the 17 th July 2020, read more...

Survivorship Provisions- 30 Days to Benefit

November 9th 2020 | wills and probate
It is common to included a survivorship clause in Wills. The logic behind this is to prevent assets from passing to a beneficiary who dies shortly afterwards and so has very little or, more likely, no benefit from the asset. If the soon-deceased beneficiary leaves a taxable estate then the read more...

Modern Technology – An Executor’s Nightmare

October 1st 2020 | wills and probate
A recent Direct Line survey has found that modern technology has been making it more difficult for executors to correctly administer estates. This has largely been blamed on the rise of online only banking and the use of biometric login details. For environmental and confidentiality reasons, most people now opt read more...

Attorneys vs Deputies- What is the Difference?

September 23rd 2020 | court of protection
When it comes to managing other people’s affairs, there are effectively two ways to gain authority. To the lay person the distinction is not always apparent, however there are significant differences in the time and cost involved in one route over the other, as well as the reason why a read more...

Who’s On The Hook?- The Case of Linda Box

August 6th 2020 | wills and probate
Cases involving a former solicitor, Linda Box, who misappropriated estate funds are currently before the Courts. Ms Box was jailed in 2017 for fraud, theft, and forgery, having stolen millions of pounds from clients during her years in practice.  It can be quite uncomfortable for us as lawyers to discuss read more...

Deathbed Gifts

July 17th 2020 | wills and probate
Death bed gifts, or donatio mortis causa ("DMC") , are a bit of a legal quirk. They received some publicity when the residential nil rate band was introduced a few years ago as a possible way of side-stepping the £2m taper threshold. So, what are they? A DMC is a read more...

Remembering Charities

June 30th 2020 | wills and probate
When preparing Wills, one of the most difficult points for clients (particularly those with young children) to think about is a disaster provision. Sometimes (and with misplaced cheeriness) known as a Disneyland Clause, these ask a client to consider who they would wish to inherit their estates if, at the read more...

The Role of Executor – A Risky Business

May 19th 2020 | wills and probate
Glancing through the news recently I noticed a story about an executor who has had a warrant issued for his arrest due to his failure to comply with his duties. The role of an executor carries quite significant obligations and the consequences for failing to correctly administer an estate can read more...

How to Sign a Will During Coronavirus Lockdown

April 6th 2020 | wills and probate
The current COVID 19 crisis has lead people to review their circumstances and, as such, Private Client practitioners have seen an increase in the demand for Wills. This has been from a combination of people who had no Wills in place finally deciding to put their affairs in order and read more...

The Checklist- Getting your Affairs in Order

March 23rd 2020 | wills and probate
In light of the recent coronavirus outbreak, I have received several concerned calls from clients in relation to steps that they should be taking. I am not the alarmist type, and so have stressed the need to remain calm, however the virus has caused many people to take a look read more...

The Importance of a Staple

February 11th 2020 | wills and probate
Who knew a staple could cause so many problems? When a professional drafts a Will, we generally arrange for them to be sewn with ribbon or bound. This not only looks nice but also makes it harder for clients to unsuspectingly separate the document.  Where it is apparent that a read more...

A Scottish Connection

December 20th 2019 | wills and probate
Fun Fact! Did you know that you can make a Will at the age of 12 in Scotland? There are quite a few variations in the law when you head north of the border, and it is important to remember that Scotland is a separate legal jurisdiction. As such, careful read more...

Guide to The Court of Protection - Health and Welfare Deputyship

December 9th 2019 | court of protection
If someone loses capacity without having a valid Lasting or Enduring Power of Attorney in place, then those seeking to make decisions will need to apply to the Court of Protection for the authority to make decisions on their behalf. There are several types of a decision that the Court read more...

Guide to The Court of Protection - Property and Finance Deputyships

November 6th 2019 | court of protection
What happens if decisions need to made for someone who lacks mental capacity? With an ageing population this is an issue which has become more prominent in people's mind. This is further compounded by significant care costs and high property values, which mean that incapacitated individuals are left with valuable assets read more...

The Horror of Homemade Wills

October 31st 2019 | wills and probate
I have been seeing more and more homemade Wills in recent years. I will freely admit that, as a Probate Solicitor, these fill me with dread. This is because homemade Wills usually lack useful administrative provisions, or worse, contain clauses which are unworkable or open to challenge. I would never read more...

A Quick Guide to Trusts

September 25th 2019 | trusts
The concept of trusts can be a difficult one to explain to non-lawyers. Most people know that they exist but have very little knowledge about how they operate or why they might be established. In recent years they have received a particularly bad rap as they have become associated with read more...

What Happens If I Do Not Have a Will?

August 21st 2019 | wills and probate
A Will is a document, created by someone during their lifetime, which sets out what they would like to happen to their assets when they die. If you die without a Will, your estate passes under the rules of intestacy. There are several common misconceptions about what happens when someone read more...

The £1 Million Inheritance Tax Threshold - Is it Real?

August 14th 2019 | wills and probate
The concept of inheritance tax is fairly strange to our American cousins. In the UK, when someone dies, any amount in their estate above their available tax-free allowance is charged to tax at 40%. There are some exceptions to this rule, for instance if estates are passing to spouses or read more...

Lifetime Gifting: A Salutary Lesson

July 31st 2019 | wills and probate
A friend of mine recently forwarded this article to me, asking what the legal position is in relation to gifts to children, and if parents have an ability to ask for their money back. In this scenario, a lady’s parents gifted her £100,000 to help her to buy her home. read more...

Statutory Wills: A Brief Guide

May 20th 2019 | court of protection
A Will is a document, made by someone, which sets out how their estate should be distributed on their death and who should deal with the administration. However, recent research carried out by Prudential found that around 60% of the UK population does not have a Will. If someone dies read more...

Mortgage Deposits and the Bank of Mum & Dad

March 14th 2019 | wills and probate
The cost of buying homes in the UK has escalated significantly in the past few years. However, house prices themselves seem to have stagnated –Most likely as a result of a concerted effort by the conservatives to curtail the buy-to-let market (by way of increased stamp duty and loss of read more...
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