Probate, Wills & Estate Planning
We are now licensed to carry out probate work and as an ancillary to that we also offer a service of provising Wills for clients, and Powers of Attorney.
For some years we have been helping solicitor firms (both clients and otherwise) with Inheritance Tax and the accounting side of probate. It seemed sensible, as soon as we were able, to become licensed to do probate work ourselves. Our own Institute recently became a regulated body and that’s how we became officially able to do the work. We were trained and we completed the relevant exam. Then we were specifically licensed.
We were joined in early 2016 by Susan Malthouse. Susan has been a qualified probate solicitor all her working life and when her former partner retired it seemed sensible that she should join us.
The directors of this firm and for that matter Susan herself are named executors for many clients because it is a service that we offer, so we already have several cases on the go and we expect a lot more in the future, fatalistic though that approach may appear to be.
We offer a sympathetic and constructive probate service and of course we also advise on Inheritance Tax planning which has been one of our specialities for years.
The legislation that governs passing on your estate to your chosen beneficiaries obviously calls for planning ahead.
The earlier you make the arrangements, the greater your chance of taking full advantage of the tax opportunities available and thereby maximising the amount that goes to your beneficiaries. Nothing is more demoralising than the thought that a substantial slice of the wealth you have worked hard to accumulate will end up in the Government’s coffers. And it can be very substantial.
It is equally important when planning to transfer your estate that you make adequate provision for yourself and your spouse in your later years. Striking this balance calls for careful thinking, experience and a detailed knowledge of the tax regime.
We provide an estate planning service that includes:
- Help with drawing up and reviewing your will
- Making full use of exemptions and lower tax rates on lifetime transfers
- Optimising lifetime transfers between spouses
- Transferring agricultural or business property
- Transferring assets into trust
- Advising on adequate life assurance to cover potential inheritance tax liabilities.
Details about our probate registration can be viewed in the ICAEW’s probate register under reference number C001742589