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Emeritus Legal Services
Emeritus Legal Services
Emeritus Legal Services
Emeritus Legal Services

Our Services

Wills

Death is not a subject we generally want to talk about, however, an up to date Will is the only way that you can be sure your wishes are followed about where, how and to whom your money and assets will go when you die.

Failure to make a Will can cause bereaved relatives further distress as the law will decide who receives your possessions, regardless of what your wishes might have been. Do not assume 'that my wife will get everything once I die'.

A Will is particularly important if you have a friend or relative with a learning disability or if you co-habit with a partner or indeed if you have re-married and have children/ step-children.

Even the most stable and sensible of families can be reduced to bitter arguments if a loved one dies without making a will.

Tax

Lifetime Tax Planning - 'IHT is, broadly speaking, a voluntary levy paid by those who distrust their heirs more than they dislike the Inland Revenue' - The late Roy Jenkins.

Do not think that Inheritance Tax (IHT) is just for the rich. From stately homes to terraced houses many are liable to inheritance tax.

We can help to minimise the damage. As it is generally charged on estates worth more than £255,000.00, the rise in house prices has meant that many more people than ever before face IHT liability.

We can help you to try and minimise the damage.

Enduring Powers of Attorney

Have you considered who would manage your affairs if you became physically or mentally incapable of handling matters yourself?

A Power of Attorney enables someone else to manage your affairs for you but you have to to be mentally capable of granting such a Power of Attorney. If you don't do this whilst mentally capable, then your family or friends will have to apply to The Court of Protection to ensure that your affairs are properly dealt with. We can draft a Power of Attorney for you. Prevention is better than cure and we should all prepare for old age and an inability to cope.

Help for Personal Representatives

Personal Representatives are the people named in a will to act as executor, or the next of kin of someone who has left no will.

Being a personal representative has heavy responsibilities and can be legally difficult. This is quite apart from the fact that after a loss of someone close to you, dealing with these matters may prove personally distressing. With this in mind we will relieve you of the burden of 'getting probate' and help you ensure that the wishes of the deceased are followed.

Long Term Residential Care

It is a fact of life that many people may need to go into a nursing home or some other form of long term residential care when they get older. It is also true that your capital and home can be used to pay for this care .Simply transferring the ownership to your children however is no guarantee that your house is protected from being used to pay for fees. We provide practical help on dealing with this sort of situation.

Help for the Elderly and the Housebound

We can also give practical advice and assistance to people who find it difficult to get out and about and deal with their financial affairs, particularly, if members of the family are living away. The service can range from picking up your pension from the local Post Office, paying the bills, to fully managing your affairs and finances.

The Court of Protection

We can act as Receivers for clients who have become mentally incapable of managing their affairs and who did not execute a Power of Attorney. We can either help you draft the necessary documentation to appoint a Receiver or be appointed to act as Receivers ourselves.

Contentious Probate

If you believe that that you have been inadequately provided for by your spouse, partner, relative or friend then, subject to legislation, case law and available evidence, you may be entitled to claim against the estate.

You may, on the other hand believe that the person who made the Will did so under pressure or was not mentally capable of making a Will sign a will. Again, subject to the evidence available, the validity of the will could be challenged.

Going to court is both costly and risky. There are no guarantees of success.
Again we offer a first interview free facility.

Please contact Rhys Lloyd Thomas or Patricia Brand on (029) 2056 7836.

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