The National Conveyancing Protocol (the Protocol) is a framework or over-arching guide for the sale and purchase of a property/home for an owner/occupier. It has been devised by the Law Society and has been subject to a recent revision and its importance is to help in achieving the objective of a smooth sale and purchase…
For many separated or divorcing families, Christmas can be a difficult time because you are constantly being reminded of spending time not only with your immediate family, but also your wider family. Organising time with your family can become complicated and this can lead to tensions. The fundamental advice is that, wherever possible, try to…
From 6 April 2020 payment of Capital Gains Tax (CGT) liabilities arising from sales of residential properties by UK residents will be payable within 30 days of completion of the sale. So, you had better start speaking to your accountant now…. Whilst promises of additional government spending, be it to fund extra policemen or free…
Employment contract issues are one of the biggest problems and headaches for businesses. They can use up valuable resources when trying to sort them out. Invariably, the money invested in having good employment contracts, and staff handbooks in place, is far less expensive than sorting out the issues which poor contracts create. Here are five…
The growth in claims after death Over the next few months, Barrett & Co will be publishing a series of articles highlighting the extensive work that we do in what is known as Contentious Probate. This specific type of civil litigation is primarily linked to issues and disputes caused when family members pass away, perhaps…
Many people, when approaching retirement or shortly after having retired, take the opportunity to review their financial and personal affairs. This is often a time when they realise that their priorities for the future have changed now that they are older, and their children have grown up. For example, whereas previously Inheritance Tax may have…
In November 2018 the UK Government proposed a substantial increase in Probate Court fees which were to be charged on a sliding scale in accordance with the value of the Estate. My colleague, Jane Whitfield, wrote an article at the time explaining the increases which can be found here. These increases would have seen our…
Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that the number of cohabiting couple families is growing faster than married couples and has increased by 25% over the past decade; making them the second largest family type (the largest being married couple families). It has also been established that one in five cohabiting couples…
You may be eligible for a refund if you were overcharged deputyship fees by the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) for England and Wales. Due to the difficulty in predicting costs, as the number of deputyships rose faster than the OPG expected, the fees charged did not match how much it cost the OPG…
Farmers Fall Out A recent case in the Court of Appeal (Liddle v Liddle [2019] EWCA) establishes the principle that, under a cross option agreement (an agreement allowing outgoing business owners/partners to require the continuing owners/partners to purchase their share of the business) the continuing owners/partners could not be required to pay the buyout price…
