Our Private Client Team are able to assist on Elderly Client matters, planning for your future and helping with circumstances following death. The team consists of a Partner, Solicitors and Probate Assistant who all understand the various concerns of those seeking their assistance.
We endeavour to make sure that the matter is conducted proficiently and in a timely manner, ensuring the best possible results for your objectives.
Below we detail the fixed fees available for Wills, Lasting Powers of Attorney and registration of an Enduring Power of Attorney. Further we give simple advice upon all aspects of the law covered by this department. Should you wish to contact us for further information or for a clearer understanding of prices, please contact us.
Wills
A Will is a formal legal document which outlines how a person’s assets are to be distributed after their death and specifies care arrangements for any young children. Making a Will is essential if you wish to protect your assets for your family and to ensure that decisions affecting your loved ones are made by you and not by the Courts or the local Council.
Our fee includes meeting with you to discuss and explain all the relevant issues, preparing the Will, arranging for the Will to be signed and witnessed, then providing a copy for you and storage of the original (if desired).
- Basic Will £200 plus VAT
- Mirror Wills suitable for spouses / civil partners £300 plus VAT
Occasionally a Will request can be particularly complex. In such instances it may be necessary to make an additional charge. In the event that your Will request is particularly complex please be assured that we will notify you before the work is carried out so you can decide how you wish to proceed.
Lasting Powers of Attorney
A ‘Lasting Power of Attorney’ (LPA) is a legal document which lets you appoint someone you trust to make decisions on your behalf in the event that you become mentally incapacitated. There are two types of LPA:
- Property & Financial Affairs which allows you to appoint someone to manage your property and financial affairs.
- Personal Welfare which allows you to appoint someone to make decisions about your personal welfare and healthcare.
For an LPA to take effect it has to be formally ‘registered’ with the ‘Office of the Public Guardian’. When registering a LPA, a Court Fee (currently £82) is payable. However, depending upon your financial situation, it is sometimes possible to reduce – or even completely avoid – this fee. Our fee includes meeting with you to discuss and explain the relevant issues, preparing and, where possible, certifying the LPA. Then arranging for the LPA to be signed and witnessed. Carrying out all the necessary Court applications / notifications up to and including the final production / registration of the LPA. Then providing a number of legally certified copies of the LPA and providing storage of the original (if desired).
| Lasting Powers of Attorney | Individual | Couple |
|---|---|---|
| Property & Financial Affairs | £400 plus VAT (plus £82 Court fee) | £500 plus VAT (plus £164 Court fee) |
| Personal Welfare | £400 plus VAT (plus £82 Court fee) | £500 plus VAT (plus £164 Court fee) |
| Combined (Property & Personal) | £600 plus VAT (plus £164 Court fee) | £750 plus VAT (plus £328 Court fee) |
Registration of Enduring Powers of Attorney
‘Enduring Powers of Attorney’ (EPAs) were replaced by LPAs in 2007 so it is no longer possible to draw up a new EPA. However, pre-existing EPAs are still legal in the event of their originator becoming mentally incapacitated – but only if they are first ‘registered’ with the ‘Office of the Public Guardian’.
As with LPAs, depending upon your financial situation, it is sometimes possible to reduce – or even completely avoid the Registration Court Fee.
Our fee includes meeting with you to discuss and explain the relevant issues, completing and submitting the appropriate registration forms, notifying close relatives and paying the Court Fee. Then providing you with a number of legally certified copies of the EPA to send out to relevant organisations and providing secure storage of the original (if desired).
- Registration of EPA: £300 plus VAT (plus £82 Court fee)
Very occasionally some LPA or EPA registrations are particularly complex or contested. In such instances it may be necessary to make an additional charge. In the event that your request is particularly complex please be assured that we will notify you at the onset, before the work is carried out, so you can decide how you wish to proceed.
Probate and Administration
Our probate team concentrates on the efficient management and administration of an estate, ensuring it is handled sensitively and swiftly to ensure the deceased’s affairs are wound up, assets transferred or sold, and the beneficiaries receive their entitlement without delay.
We provide fast expert advice whether there is a Will or not. Where appropriate, we will complete the Inland Revenue forms and all other papers necessary to obtain a grant of representation to enable the deceased’s assets to be released and distributed. Where the deceased did not consider tax planning before death, it is possible to vary the Will or the effects of the intestacy and thereby create substantial tax savings.
Tax Planning
When making a Will, tax planning always needs to be taken into account. It is sensible to review your financial position on a regular basis so that any tax saving schemes can be considered. When thinking about Wills, the tax advantages of making lifetime gifts to family members or others can be discussed.
We can advise on gifts and other tax planning and tax saving opportunities (including trusts). We focus on preserving and enhancing clients’ assets by advising on tax and succession planning. This may include transferring assets from one generation to another in a structured way to minimise tax liability and other problems.
Trusts
Trusts are traditionally used to avoid or solve problems in two main areas; taxation and family matters. A trust is a formal transfer of assets e.g. property, shares, or money to a small group of people or to a trust company (trustees) on the basis that the assets are held by the trustees for the benefit of others.
To save tax, assets which you no longer need can be put into a trust to reduce your wealth and minimise inheritance tax on your death. Assets can also be placed in trust to prevent children of your relatives receiving or inheriting too much wealth too early in their lives or at an inappropriate time.
You may wish to give a life interest to a family member or a dependent person rather than making a gift of assets to them outright. A trust can deal with this type of situation and it means that, upon the death of a lifetime beneficiary, the asset can return to you or pass to your family.
Court of Protection / Deputyships
When someone becomes incapable of looking after their own affairs, the Court of Protection has power to appoint people (usually close relatives) to look after them. Such people are called Deputies.
Any major decisions concerning the patient have to be taken by the Court of Protection and we can act on behalf of the Deputies in making the necessary applications and dealing with the Court of Protection generally.
If possible, a Lasting Power of Attorney, made while someone is mentally capable, is preferable because this will remain valid even after the person granting it comes mentally incapable.
Services For Elderly People
We have a special range of services to meet the needs of elderly clients, or those with elderly relatives. Home visits can be arranged and we place great importance on the establishment of a good relationship between client and solicitor.