Blog
Kingsley Napley’s Medical Negligence Team ‘walks together’ with the Dame Vera Lynn Children’s Charity
Sharon Burkill
14 July 2016
Providing for your Pokémon in your Will
Everyone is talking about Pokémon Go but no one is asking the most important question of all – what happens to your Pokémon when you die?
7 April 2016
The death of a child without a will — is it time to change the law?
As a Court of Protection practitioner acting for many clients with catastrophic injuries it is a sad but unavoidable fact that I will occasionally receive a call advising me of the unexpected death of a client. When this has happened it affects me deeply, particularly when it involves a child, so I can only imagine what my client’s family is going through. I like to develop strong relationships with my clients based not just on our professional dealings but also in a personal capacity. The decisions I take can have a significant impact on their lives and I believe it makes me a better lawyer if I take the time to know my client on a personal level. As a result, you feel more keenly the loss of a client you have come to know well over a long period of time.
A slightly amended version of this blog appeared on The Times in April 2016.
16 March 2016
Wills, gifts and inheritance tax planning for Attorneys and Deputies
The ability to make a Will and make gifts to loved ones is something most of us take for granted. One of the most common reasons for doing these things is to reduce the Inheritance Tax (IHT) payable on our death.
14 January 2016
Protecting a same-sex survivor’s right to pension funds
Over the past decade, the UK government has legalised same-sex civil partnerships and most recently same-sex marriages. Legislation provides that same-sex couples who are married or in civil partnerships shall be treated the same as married heterosexual couples. For example, they are entitled to receive the same inheritance tax benefits, such as the spousal exemption, which exists between a married heterosexual couple.
16 July 2015
When are you on your deathbed?
What exactly is a ‘deathbed’? That was the question for the Court of Appeal when it was asked to rule on whether or not an elderly lady had made a gift of her house to her nephew.
The case of King v Dubrey and others concerned the rather obscure legal doctrine of donatia mortis causa – which means ‘gift in contemplation of death. In other words, a ‘deathbed gift’.