LOCAL SOLICITORS ADVICE AGAINST DIY PROBATE

30/08/2011

Whilst it’s possible for an individual to apply for probate and deal with an estate without help from a lawyer - it’s not without risks, warns Karen Hayward, a wills, probate and trusts lawyer at Nottingham law firm Rothera Dowson.

According to Karen, many professionally drafted wills contain trusts to save tax and protect assets, for example to avoid those who inherit paying care fees and to reduce the likelihood of potential disputes. She comments:

“As one of the Solicitors for the Elderly (SFE) members at Rothera Dowson, I have noticed an increase in ‘DIY-ers’ returning to us to seek advice when they have made a mistake or found the paperwork too tricky.

“For example, Mr H’s will had included a tax saving and asset protection trust, but when his daughter administered the estate on her own, she paid the whole estate over to her mother. Fortunately we’re able to sort out the matter and avoid future complications occurring when her mother eventually dies.

“Another example is the case of Mr G, who sold some shares that had made a gain during the administration of his late sister’s estate and had to pay tax. If he had transferred the shares to himself first, before selling them, he could have avoided the tax.”

According to Karen, people aren’t always aware of the complexities and assume probate work is straightforward:

“It’s true that it can be, but often it isn’t. In all but the most straightforward cases, it’s important to seek timely specialist legal advice that can actually save people money and worry.”

Many SFE member lawyers like Karen and her colleague Suzanne McAuley will offer to work in partnership with the deceased’s family to help and support them with the legal and technical work. As elder law specialists, firms such as Rothera Dowson can even add value to their work, for example by identifying cases where money is owed to the estate for care funding which should have been met by the NHS, and assist in making a claim.

For more information, please contact Karen Haywood and Suzanne McAuley at Rothera Dowson. Further details on Rothera Dowson please contact us on 0845 124 4012