The government has provided brief but useful advice on Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) and how they can be used to help people who are no longer able to make decisions for themselves. An LPA is a legal document that you can draw up when you’re fit and healthy authorising someone you choose to make
All non-contentious probate applications where there is a will in place must now be made online. The service, known as MyHMCTS, was set up by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to streamline applications, enabling probate professionals to issue, pay for and manage applications within civil and family courts and tribunals. It went live on 2
Four siblings have succeeded in overturing their mother’s will after the court agreed that she had not fully understood its consequences when she signed it. The case pitted the mother’s first four children against her youngest child, the defendant. In 2004, the mother and her husband had executed mirror wills, which meant that if the
An administrator of a deceased person’s estate was granted a freezing injunction for a property that had been transferred into a family member’s name to avoid tax liability. The deceased had died without making a will. The administrator of his estate contended that a few years before his death, the deceased had put a property
The High Court has upheld a vulnerable woman’s will and rejected a claim by her daughter that she had been subjected to undue influence. The case involved two sisters, Teresa Ann Coles and Heather Christine Reynolds. In 2002, their mother made a will leaving her estate to be divided equally between them. However, the relationship
The Supreme Court has ruled that a woman’s sons will have to pay inheritance tax on her pension fund because she had not drawn upon it during her lifetime. The court heard evidence that the deceased woman and her former husband had been directors of a company. Shortly before her death, she transferred funds from
The High Court has settled a dispute between two brothers and their sister over their father’s will. The claim concerned the estate of a Mr Evans who died in 2019. He was survived by his wife, who suffered from motor neurone disease. Her daughter was acting as her litigation friend – someone who helps a
The number of families having to pay inheritance tax (IHT) has fallen for the first time since 2009, according to the latest figures. Inheritance tax is set at 40% and becomes payable once the tax-free threshold of £325,000 has been passed. There is no tax liability if a person’s estate passes directly to their spouse.
The Government says that wills witnessed over video links during the Covid19 pandemic will be considered legal and valid. The move is designed to make it easier for people to record their final wishes while keeping safe and practising social distancing. Currently, the law states that a will must be made ‘in the presence of’
A group of MPs have called for root and branch reforms of the inheritance tax system, including a cut in the standard rate from 40% to 10%. They also want to scrap most of the current tax reliefs, including the seven-year rule that allows you to pass on wealth without any tax implications. Instead, the