By acting as an Executor you take on a key responsibility to protect the estate of the deceased. In many cases the substantial asset of the deceased is the former family home so you must act quickly to protect the asset. What are the steps you should take if the property is unoccupied? You should…
Among the Private Client team, clients often ask us whether putting their home into the names of their adult children would be a good idea. This is usually due to concerns about the costs of care as they become elderly, or perhaps fears that their home would have to be sold to pay Inheritance Tax…
Who will pay for litigation and how much it will cost are two of the most frequently asked questions by clients. A common response is that “it depends”. Below I explore that answer. Before court proceedings commence Each party bears their own costs and generally you cannot recover your costs from the other party. The…
For those who have had to undertake the task of obtaining a Grant of Probate recently, you may have noticed that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic seems to be affecting turnaround times on various key parts of the process, right from the start with the “Tell Us Once” government service, all the way through to the…
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, Jane Whitfield, Vanessa Ruparel and Juliette Spanner on various matters including Wills, Probates, Trusts and Lasting Powers of Attorney. Charlotte has a…
Digital assets have a very broad definition but essentially it means an electronic record in which an individual has a right or an interest. The digital asset should be treated separately from the device on which it sits, so for example you may leave your computer to your son, but the family photos stored on…
Traditionally some of the main things to consider when someone has died are whether there is a valid Will, what assets the deceased owned and who is going to inherit after the administration of the estate had been completed. However, as technology continues to advance and social media becomes a way of life there are…
Most challenges to wills which become headline news follow the theme of children who have been left less than they expected by their parent(s), or sometimes nothing at all. What is much less commonly reported is when a charity is the entity challenging or defending a contested probate. But it happens, its frequency is on…
Read the full post here: COVID-19: What to Do When Someone Dies – Three things you need to know
Most people will be aware that if Inheritance Tax is payable in an estate, then the Executors have to arrange payment. However, not everybody appreciates that an Executor is personally liable to pay the Inheritance Tax in an estate. HMRC require the Executors, or Administrators, of an estate to report accurately, all the assets and…
