Two million 55-64 year olds targeted with unsolicited pension review calls
Pensions advice and review scams are now the leading form of unsolicited contact for people approaching retirement with up to two million receiving unsolicited calls in the past year alone according to Citizens Advice. A report titled “Too Good to be True” produced by Citizens Advice also revealed those between 55 and 64 are also […]
Kings Court Trust’s response to the planned reform of Grant of Probate fees
Tomorrow is the deadline for companies and individuals to respond to the consultation to reform Grant of Probate fees. Currently, executors pay a flat fee of £215 for probate regardless of the size of estate. However, under the proposed legislation a sliding scale of fees will be introduced, capped at £20,000 for estates worth more […]
Government publishes consultation on probate fees
The Government has published its consultation document on changing probate fees.
Will written on scrap of paper in bar secures inheritance for unmarried partner
A web designer who refused to let her partner of 16 years go paragliding without writing a will says she would have lost £400,000 were it not for the will written in a Turkish hotel and witnessed by two barmen. In 2004, Sue Singer, 56, and her partner Paul Dixon were staying in Ölüdeniz, a […]
Executors Insurance Can Help Protect Lay Executors against Potentially Damaging Claims
More and more people are choosing to execute wills without professional help but very few of us understand the unlimited and personal liability we face as an executor – particularly worrying when the High Court revealed that will disputes nearly doubled between 2013 and 2014, according to the Ministry of Justice. Guy Everington of Executors […]
How to avoid the pitfalls of North American searches
People tracing in North America can present some unique challenges that aren’t commonly found in domestic enquiries. As a result, it is widely recommended that legal professionals use a specialist genealogist who has experience in dealing in this area. Given that we have tracing people for over 50 years, it is perhaps unsurprising that Title […]
Infographic: 6 million brits have experience of being an executor
While six million people have experience of being an executor, just one in 25 knows they could face unlimited liability based on their actions. That’s according to a survey conducted by Censuswide Castleacre Insurance services who produced this info-graphic you can see below.
CLC to cut regulatory fees by 20% by November
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers have announced their intention to cut fees for those it regulated by a fifth with the changes set to come into effect at the beginning of November. The CLC recently announced plans to qualify probate practitioners and have been permitted to license probate practitioners since the Deregulation Act 2015 came […]
Judge defends Court of Protection as not “a sinister, secret court”
Mr Justice Mostyn has defended the Court of Protection, saying he wanted to dispel the myth it is “sinister” and “secret”. The Court of Protection is currently undergoing a pilot scheme which sees the majority of cases held in open court with anonymity orders in place to protect the people involved, whereas previously only rare […]
Mowbray Woodwards appoint new wills, probate and trusts solicitor
A Bath based law firm has brought in a new wills, probate, trusts and Powers of Attorney solicitor to it’s Queen Square office. Mowbray Woodwards have appointed Owen Mason as a solicitor to the private client team. He previously worked for three years at Cooperative Legal Services in Bristol. He said: “Mowbray Woodwards is a […]
Legal tech company ULS announces Will Writing Comparison venture
The parent company of comparison services eConveyancer and compareprobate.co.uk has announced a new venture aimed at providing comparison services for will writers. ULS Technology PLC announced the move with two unnamed partners to the London Stock Exchange last week. The announcement read: “ULS Technology PLC, the provider of online technology platforms for the UK conveyancing […]
Spring the busiest time for calls to Wills and Probate sector say Moneypenny.
Spring is the busiest time of year for the wills and probate sector according to telephone answering service Moneypenny. The company who say they are the UK’s leading telephone answering specialists also said that the average number of calls per month across January and February was 53% higher than December, despite the fact that Moneypenny […]
Having mental capacity when you don’t
In order to leave a valid will, you need to have mental capacity at the time you sign the will, right? Wrong. The recent, sad case of Burns v Burns [2016] EWCA Civ 37 once again shows that setting aside a will on the ground that the testator lacked capacity can be difficult, and should […]
The 25th IPW Annual General Meeting and Conference – what you missed
This year’s Institute of Professional Willwriters (IPW) and Institute of Scottish Professional Willwriters (ISPW) General Meeting and Will Writing Academy Conference held today (17th March 2016) has been a great success. Having attracted around 115 members to attend the event at Drayton Manor Hotel in Staffordshire, the IPW can safely say it was a very […]
Widow told she’s “too wealthy” to receive extra from late husband’s homemade will
The widow of construction tycoon Ian Wooldridge has been told she’s “too wealthy” to receive extra from her late husband’s will. Thandi Wooldridge, who previously ran an advertising company and is worth £10 million in her own right, took her stepson to court saying she needed an additional £372,000 a year to cover her own […]
Budget spells out application of inheritance tax rules from 2017
George Osborne has used his 2016 budget to amend inheritance tax rules for non-doms with property held abroad indirectly now subject to the charge. Budget documents state: “The government is undertaking a major reform to non‑domicile taxation. As announced at Summer Budget 2015, from April 2017 non-UK domiciled individuals (non-doms) will be deemed UK domiciled […]
“Spending The Kids’ Inheritance” to mean care homes instead of cruises by 2025
Retirees in ten years time are going to be forced to chose more mundane options compared to their parents when it comes to what they spend their savings on according to a report. The report titled “Citizen 2025” by Barcan & Kirby says that whilst current retirees are managing to save a “somewhat dumbfounding” £49 […]
1 in 5 lawyers worried financial advice goes beyond core expertise with Inheritance Tax and Trusts top of the list
Around half of lawyers are called on to provide advice on trusts and inheritance tax but one in five say they are worried their advice goes beyond their core expertise. The research, conducted by Pollright, also showed that 78% of firms are now turning to independent financial advisers. More than two thirds (68%) of lawyers […]
Law firm recruit new contentious trust specialists.
Leeds based family law firm Jones Myers has recruited two new contentious trusts specialists. Solicitor Polly Coram and paralegal Kate Wootton join the contentious trusts and probate team headed by Martin Holdsworth, the only contentious probate lawyer in Yorkshire that has been individually ranked by Chambers 2016 guide . The firm has also hired Elizabeth […]
Nearly half of firms have experienced an IT data breach
Nearly half of UK companies have experienced a data breach according to the 2016 security pressures report from Trustwave. The survey of 1,414 IT professionals globally, including 204 from the UK, also found that unauthorised file transfers were the biggest worry of IT decision makes when it came to security threats inside an organisation, with […]
