In May 2020 the law surrounding organ donation changed so that all adults in England will now be considered to have given consent to donate their organs when they die, unless they have formally ‘opted-out’ and their decision has been registered on the NHS Organ Donor Register. Prior to this change in law, adults in…
Last year we discussed generally what happens to your digital accounts when you die: you can read the article here. We now report on updates during the last year. Apple Users On 13 December 2021, during the release of its iOS 15.2 update, Apple officially released its Digital Legacy feature, which lets people choose the specific people…
As a Private Client Solicitor, I am often asked by clients, usually within a Will meeting, “what is Probate?” Probate is defined as a judicial process whereby a Will is proved through the Courts; this, as one might expect, is not an overly helpful or clear explanation to give to clients! Generally speaking, Probate is…
When a loved one passes away, we often receive telephone calls from family members who simply do not know where to start. Often families feel that there must be a million and one tasks to be getting on with and they are not sure which to prioritise, and which can be left on the back…
The old saying goes that there are only two guarantees in life: death and taxes. Therefore, with this in mind, it makes sense why so many of us want to ensure that after we die, our hard-earned assets are passed to the people who mean the most to us. Although Barrett & Co recommends that…
Setting up trusts, transferring assets to children or grandchildren and gifting money to relatives can at times be utilised as effective lifetime tax planning methods to try to limit the Inheritance Tax liability of an estate when carefully explored using professional legal advisors. But what happens when you take advice provided by a company you…
Following on from last month’s contentious probate article, Contentious Probate: How Much and Who Pays, we go into detail about one particular way in which clients can instruct a solicitor: using a CFA. What is a CFA? A conditional fee agreement is an agreement between a client and their lawyer where payment of the lawyer…
At the start of September 2020, the Private Client department expanded with Charlotte Corcoran qualifying from Trainee Solicitor to Solicitor. Having qualified, Charlotte joined the Private Client team to work alongside Hilary Buckle, Vanessa Ruparel and Juliette Spanner on various matters including Wills, Probates, Trusts and Lasting Powers of Attorney. Charlotte has a growing interest…
This article is the second in a two-part series exploring the roles and responsibilities of a personal representative (“PR”). There are 6 main duties which are being considered. This article will summarise duties 4-6. The first 3 can be found in Part 1 of the series. Duty 4: Duty to Provide Inventory and Account As…
