James Ward

James heads the Private Client team at Kingsley Napley and is tasked with overseeing the continued development of the private client offering for both existing and new clients of the firm.

His objective is for the Private Client team to offer the highest quality legal, practical and commercial private client advice for both domestic and international families and individuals.

He has extensive experience advising families and individuals on wealth protection and tax mitigation. This covers the drafting of Wills to best suit a client’s financial and family requirements, advice on gifting to support the next generation and to mitigate tax,  the setting up of trusts to protect assets and provide long term financial benefit and the efficient and speedy administration of estates.

Often his clients will have international connections; whether they own overseas property or have recently arrived or invested in the UK, or are long term residents who are still non-UK domiciled. He specialises in giving advice on UK tax for these international clients or working closely with accountants on key areas such as UK inheritance tax and UK capital gains tax.

A key focus is the advising of overseas clients purchasing UK property and how such property should be owned in the most tax efficient way.

James has a broad client base covering people just across the road or located on the other side of the world. He is just as comfortable dealing with the private affairs of a CEO of a multinational business or person in the public eye as he is dealing with a vulnerable elderly client with tricky family dynamics.

In general, clients praise his straightforward explanations and clear communication alongside a friendly manner.

Professional societies and memberships

• The Law Society
• The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP)

press coverage

James is interviewed and quoted  frequently in the national press.  Some of the more recent articles that James has written, or in which he has been quoted, include: 

• The tax consequences of separation - Today's Family Lawyer, 23 March 2021
• Death tax to catch thousands more in £1bn pandemic raid - The Sunday Telegraph, 7 March 2021
• How do I stop my children's spouses gaining from my estate if they get divorced after my death?, This is Money, 18 July 2019
• Inheritance tax: Government advised to reduce seven-year gifting rule to five years, Accountancy Age, 11 July 2019
• Inheritance tax: what does the future hold?, Financial Times, 11 July 2019
• Call for radical overhaul of inheritance tax and lifetime gifting, Accountancy Daily, 5 July 2019
• IHT review proposes simplifying tax gift rules, Money Marketing, 5 July 2019
• New probate fees are a death tax in all but name, Economia, November 2018
• New 'stealth death tax' brought in without parliamentary scrutiny, The Telegraph, 14 November 2018
• Why HNWs should be worried about the probate fee hike, Spear's Magazine, 13 November 2018
• Probate fee rises are a stealth tax on the bereaved, critics claim, The Times, 7 November 2018
• Rise of 'digital inheritance' as YouGov poll shows quarter of people plan to hand social media to loved ones, The Telegraph, 6 November 2018
• Britons to be hit with new death tax: Probate fees to soar up to £6000 to access will, The Express, 6 November 2018
• Probate fees to rise to £6k for largest estates, Accountancy Daily, 6 November 2018
• Digital assets a 'cocktail of complication' for estates, International Adviser, 20 September 2018

What clients and directories say

"James is very knowledgeable and very experienced, and he's good at using his experience to identify the main issues a client needs to consider," an interviewee he's also very commercial in his approach, as he considers the client's broader requirements to ensure that his advice is appropriate, rather than focusing on answering the specific question posed to him."

Chambers High Net Worth Guide 2021

James Ward is noted for his professionalism, knowledge and friendly manner."

Legal 500 2017