Private Client Articles

The Court of Protection has made decisions on two recent bulk cases which have been brought forward by the Office of the Public Guardian. The office of the Public Guardian brought the cases to the Court of Protection as test cases so that useful guidance...

You may have been appointed as an Executor in someone’s Will or be acting as an Administrator (when there is no Will) and therefore need to deal with the administration of the deceased’s estate. A Personal Representative (PR) is the collective...

When a person dies, the best method for them to be able to dictate who inherits their assets, is to leave a properly prepared Will. The Will, if drafted correctly, allows the testator to set out their wishes for who will administer the estate, and who will...

A recent press release from the Ministry of Justice, to update on progress of the legal elements of the SmarterGov online services campaign, revealed that over 450 people used the government’s online service to apply for a divorce over the recent...

A woman who felt victimised after being accused by her boss of faking anxiety and depression to get a big pay-out has been awarded £8,000 compensation. The case involved Melanie James who started working for Capital Care Service in 2016 as a credit...

There has been a huge rise in the number of couples citing “unreasonable behaviour” as grounds for obtaining a quick divorce. Researchers at Oxford University found that the number of divorces granted to wives because of unreasonable behaviour...

More than 120,000 first-time home buyers have saved a total of £284m because of the cuts to stamp duty introduced last November, according to government figures. The first £300,000 of the price of a property is now exempt from tax for people...

The High Court has corrected an error in a trust to make it effective and ensure that it provides the intended tax benefits. The case involved the family of a woman who during her lifetime made three settlements of shares. The beneficiaries were her three...

A mother has lost her appeal to prevent her children being returned to their father in Canada. The courts rejected her argument that such a move would cause her to collapse emotionally. The mother and children had been living with the father in Canada...

Lasting Powers of Attorney are documents which are often overlooked until the time comes when they are needed. In many cases, this is often too late. This article hopes to offer some insight into the pitfalls of failing to prepare Lasting Powers of Attorney...