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Our Wills, Trusts & Probate team are friendly, approachable, highly qualified and very experienced – and are here to help you plan for you and your loved ones futures.
We appreciate that you may need help with complex legal issues, often at a difficult and emotional time. Our aim is to help you through these times by offering services, such as writing a Will, advising you in acting as an executor, and making a Lasting Power of Attorney.
Through the process of estate management, our experts can help give you and your family peace of mind – secure in the knowledge that your wishes have been heard, and a plan is in place to manage your estate upon your death.
The drafting of a Will is certainly an important part of the estate planning process – helping you to clarify what you would like to happen to your assets and finances after you pass away, including the appointment of a guardian to care for any minor children.
However, it is also important to consider preparing a lifetime document, known as a Lasting Power of Attorney, to nominate a trusted person to make financial and healthcare decisions on your behalf in the event that you are unable to manage your affairs for yourself. You may also wish to give someone the ability to make a decision about life-prolonging treatment via an Advanced Directive.
Our team can also advise you on the merits of joint property ownership and prepare Declarations of Trust to record agreements between owners relating to the division of the sale proceeds (if unequal) and the payment of loans and mortgage repayments.
We understand it can be difficult to make such plans, but our experts will help you through this process every step of the way. We also know through first-hand experience, the security and support it can bring you and your loved ones when difficult and emotional times come.
Inheritance Tax is a tax on the value estate of someone who has died. The value is calculated by aggregating the value of all their assets, including their property, money and possessions, and then deducting the value of any debts.
Depending on who you are leaving your estate to on death, there are some exemptions that apply. However, generally each individual has a threshold of £325,000, which they can leave without Inheritance Tax being payable. This is known as the Nil Rate Band. Then any part of a person’s estate valued over this threshold is charged at the standard inheritance tax rate of 40%.
This threshold was extended in April 2017 with the introduction of an additional threshold to offset against the value of a property, known as the Residence Nil Rate Band. There are a number of limitations and exclusions to overcome to ensure that your estate can take advantage of this additional threshold, which we can help you with.
Our team of experienced experts are happy to talk through with you the potential tax implications relating to your situation – helping you understand any reliefs and exemptions and contacting HMRC if you are an executor of an estate. Our overall aim is to put you in a position where you understand the Inheritance Tax legislation and can reduce your estate’s liability to pay this.
The importance of making a Will cannot be underestimated – it gives you control and makes sure that your wishes concerning what happens to your money, property and possessions after you die are put in place. Without a Will this is not guaranteed, and the law ultimately decides what happens to your estate – potentially causing problems for your family and those left dealing with your affairs.
We have a dedicated team of experienced, professional and approachable experts who can help you make a Will. We offer friendly and bespoke advice and are able to meet you at any of our offices or, if it is more convenient for you, at your home or any other location at a time that is suitable for you. We also offer video and telephone appointments on request.
Our team have extensive experience in drawing up Wills and understand the impact they can have on your future, and the future of your loved ones – and therefore will support and advise you every step of the way.
We can prepare a bespoke Will that is tailor-made for you and your circumstances. This will include:
Our Wills, Trusts & Probate team are experienced in supporting clients in making plans for their future, including considerations about future care provision.
The potential cost of care or nursing home fees can be considerable and difficult to predict, and depending on your personal circumstances, the majority of us will be expected to cover the cost of these fees ourselves.
To be entitled to state funded care in England your financial savings and eligible assets should not exceed the £23,250 threshold. However, for most property owners, this threshold is easily exceeded, which means that the property you have worked hard to pay for might have to be sold in order to fund your care costs. Sadly, this could result in your loved ones not inheriting as much as you had hoped on your death.
Our experts can help you understand what is possible to protect your family’s inheritance, as well as helping you plan to give you and your loved ones security in later life.
We aim to give you, and those closest to you, peace of mind when it comes to the future. This includes putting in place arrangements for the unfortunate event that you are unable to manage your own affairs in the future due to an accident or a mental impairment, such as dementia, or suffering a stroke.
This can be in the form of a legal document known as a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA), which allows you to give someone you trust the power to deal with your financial affairs, and/or make decisions about your health and personal welfare, if you are unable to do so. This person or people are known as attorneys. LPAs can only be made while you are of sound mind, so our advice is that you begin the process of preparing these as early as possible. The best time would be to prepare these at the same time as your Will.
Alternatively, if you do not prepare LPAs and unfortunately suffer from a mental impairment leaving you unable to manage your affairs, the only alternative is to apply for a Deputyship Order, which will allow a person or people known as deputies to be appointed to assist with your property and financial matters. In some cases, the deputies can make health and welfare decisions on your behalf. However, unlike LPAs, you will not have control over who is appointed on your behalf and the extent of their power. These decisions will be made by the Court of Protection on application. On this basis, it is preferable to make LPAs to ensure you remain in control of such decisions.
We also offer the service of acting as professional deputies and attorneys for those without close family and friends. This is a bespoke service tailored to the incapacitated person’s needs. However, it will generally include a regular review of the person’s living accommodation, finances, and general welfare. For more information please contact our specialist, Court of Protection & Vulnerable Persons team.
Whilst it is no longer possible to make a new Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA), those created before 30th September 2007 are still valid.
Unlike LPAs, EPAs do not need to be registered in order to be used by the attorney. They do however need to be registered if the person who gave the power has been rendered unable to manage their affairs due to a mental impairment. We can help with registering EPAs on behalf of the attorneys to enable the attorney to continue using them.
We have an experienced and professional team who can advise you on the intricacies of creating a trust, the potential taxation implications (positive and negative) and provide support and advice if you are a trustee of an existing trust.
A trust is a way to give your assets to people of your choice (known as beneficiaries), in your lifetime or on death. The trust will name people to manage the trust (known as trustees). Unlike a straightforward gift, beneficiaries receiving gifts held in a trust will not have full control over the gift. Many people use a trust in conjunction with their Will to pass on their assets on death in a manner they feel is appropriate to a particular beneficiary.
The mechanism of a trust can be useful for several reasons. For example:
The responsibilities of trustees can sometimes be time consuming and burdensome. Trustees are obliged to invest the Trust Fund appropriately at the point when the trust is set up. There is also an ongoing obligation to ensure the Trust Fund remains invested appropriately throughout the duration of the trust. If the trustees fail in their responsibilities, they can be held personally liable for any connected losses by the beneficiaries. Our experienced team can help guide potential and current trustees through what may be required of them.
Our experts are here to help individuals and families navigate the legal process when somebody passes away, including assisting them through the application for probate.
We also have specialists who can support those wishing to challenge a Will or make a claim against an estate. We appreciate that anyone contacting us might be going through a difficult time and so we assure you of a supportive, compassionate, and friendly service.
Our friendly and experienced Wills, Trusts & Probate team can help you make plans for your own affairs, as well as supporting you in administering an estate if somebody close to you dies.
Contact us to receive a free quote for our Will and Lasting Power of Attorney services, either by completing our online form or by calling 01603 620508.
The firm was delighted to be named Best Regional Probate Law Firm in The Probate Industry Awards 2024 and be recognised in three categories at the 2024 Modern Law Private Client Awards.
Our Wills, Trusts & Probate solicitor, Charlotte Ranson, is a fully accredited member of the Association of Lifetime Lawyers (formerly Solicitors for the Elderly or SFE).
Our Wills, Trusts & Probate colleague, Louise Gibbs-Kneller is the holder of the STEP Advanced Certificate in Will Preparation, demonstrating Louise’s competence and expertise in Will drafting, and compliance with the STEP will writing code of practice. Louise is also a full STEP member.
Our Wills, Trusts & Probate team are recommended in The Legal 500 UK for their strong private client practice across our three branches. Head of department, Lisa Glynne is also recognised as a ‘Leading Partner’ in the rankings.
Our Wills, Trusts & Probate team is comprised of highly experienced professionals committed to delivering exceptional legal services tailored to your personal and estate planning needs. With deep expertise in drafting wills, establishing trusts, and managing probate matters, our team is well-equipped to guide you through every aspect of estate planning and administration with care and precision.
