As executor of the estate, it is your responsibility to ensure your probate solicitor has all the information necessary to administer the estate. The amount of information will depend on the complexity of the deceased person’s various assets and investments and how well organised they were with their paperwork. ‘The better the information that you …
When making your will you need to appoint at least one executor who will be responsible for the important task of dealing with your estate on your death. Deciding who to appoint is one of the most important decisions you will ever have to make so you need to consider your options carefully. Deborah Adams, …
Making a will is one of the best things you can do to ensure your family are taken care of when you die and that your money, property and other belongings are passed on to the people or good causes you have chosen. To make a valid will there are certain requirements that need to …
‘Never put off till tomorrow what may be done the day after tomorrow just as well,’ said Mark Twain in 1881 – when on average men died at 50 and women reached 56. Nowadays, average life expectancy for men in the UK is 79 and 83 for women, and one-in-every-fourteen people over 65 is likely …
It can be flattering to be asked by a relative or close friend to be a trustee of their estate, but this is a role with important legal obligations and disputes can arise when beneficiaries do not agree with the actions of trustees. One such area of potential disagreement is the amount of information that …
Whilst it is always important to have a Will, this is particularly important if you are an expat resident in Spain, or even if you just have a holiday home there. The Brussels IV Regulation that came into force in August 2015 was intended to simplify matters between member states when making Wills and dealing …
Sometimes the generosity of a friend or relative leaving you a gift in their will can backfire if it turns out your estate will need to pay tax on it or if there is a chance that it could be swallowed up in future care costs or in satisfying some other type of claim. It …
Recently a scheme has been launched to refund anyone who paid more than they should have done when applying to register a power of attorney. If you applied to register a Lasting Power of Attorney or we did so on your behalf with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) between 1st April 2013 and …
In an earlier article, Deborah Adams, head of private client department with Parnalls in Launceston, explained how making gifts of money or property during your lifetime could help reduce the inheritance tax payable on your estate when you die. In this article she looks at how making potentially exempt lifetime transfers, under what is known …
If you are fortunate enough to have financial security, and more money than you need to live comfortably, then you may want to pass on some of your wealth to your family and friends while you are still alive. Making gifts to loved ones during your lifetime can be immensely rewarding and tax efficient, but …
