Our services include:
- Preparation of Wills
- Gifts to members of your family
- Issues in Wills such as guardianship
- Obtaining Grant of Probate
- Reviewing and amending Wills
- Winding up and distributing Estates
- Contentious Probate
Wills
Can you believe that over 70% of the UK population does not have a current Will that is an accurate reflection of their financial circumstances, and their personal choices at the time of their death?
Making a Will creates certainty, reduces worry and gives you the peace of mind of knowing exactly how your money, property and possessions will be dealt with after your death.
A Will guides those who are left behind, saving further worry and heartache at a time of great emotional stress. Making a Will is the first step to take in structuring your affairs in order to minimise your liability for inheritance tax.
Probate and Estate Administration
When someone close to you dies, somebody has to deal with their estate. A person’s estate is considered to be made up of the money, property and any possessions they had at the time of their death. The process of Probate involves collecting any money that is owed, settling any debts due and dividing the estate amongst the respective beneficiaries.
All assets in an estate will remain frozen until the Probate Registry gives the authority (via a document known as a Grant of Representation) to the Executor nominated in your Will. If you have no Will, then it is up to the most appropriate member of the family to act on behalf of the estate.
If there is a Will, the estate will pass to the people named in the Will. If there is no Will, certain rules known as the Rules of Intestacy will apply.
Whether you are an Executor or the Next of Kin, we can provide practical guidance to help you deal with the administration of someone’s estate. We can help you determine the size of an estate for probate and inheritance tax purposes. We can prepare an application of the Grant of Representation on your behalf, and help you lodge the required forms with the relevant organisations to collect monies due to the estate and settle any outstanding debts.
We can arrange a transfer or sale of any shares and work with our residential property Conveyancing team to handle the sale of any property or land owned by the deceased.
Probate Disputes
We have experience of acting in the following matters:
- Inheritance Act claims where relatives/spouse of a deceased person claims a Will does not make reasonable financial provision for them
- Probate disputes where a challenge is made to the validity of the Will of the deceased, for example on the grounds of undue influence or testamentary capacity (too ill to know what they were doing)