Blog
From garage to unicorn – Employment law lessons for scaling tech teams
Catherine Bourne
18 December 2018
Inheritance Gifts, Hotchpot and Double Portions. Do children have a right to be treated equally?
Sibling concern over equal treatment can linger well into middle age and beyond; it reveals itself after a parent’s death or during their old age through arguments over who has had what and who’s going to get what. We’re not legally obliged to leave our estate to our children in equal shares or, indeed to leave them anything at all.
6 December 2018
Inheritance Tax - why do so many fall into the 'Gift With Reservation of Benefit' trap?
Saving Inheritance Tax (IHT) on death by making a gift and surviving by seven years is standard tax planning sanctioned by statute. However, if you make a gift but ‘reserve a benefit’ in the property given, it will still be brought into charge on death, regardless of how long you survive.
22 November 2018
Stop Press: Swearing abolished (for Probate anyway)
As a famous proponent of ‘swearing’ Gordon Ramsay might be amused to learn that from the end of November 2018, personal representatives will no longer need to formally swear an oath before receiving a Grant of Representation.
19 November 2018
I have just been appointed as an attorney under a Lasting Power of Attorney – what action should I take?
You have been appointed as your loved one’s property and affairs attorney under a Lasting Power of Attorney (“LPA”) and this has been registered by the Office of the Public Guardian (“OPG”). The OPG has published new guidance which may be helpful. As an attorney, you must always act honestly and in the best interests of the person granting the power of attorney (the donor). This role can often be daunting.
15 November 2018
Joint tenancy - a historical anachronism which should be scrapped?
Property can be owned jointly in two ways: as Beneficial Joint Tenants or as Tenants in Common. This blog looks at the differences as well as the pros and cons of each.