Elysium Wills and Estate Planning

11/08/2026

Fantastic event at the Women in Business Big Show on Thursday in Longleet, Kent. Many fantastic businesses and familiar faces. Great to network in the local community.

29/07/2026

Do I want to nominate a Professional Executor in my will?

My clients often nominate family members or close friends to be the executor and also a trustee within their Will. However, some people are not that lucky or able to choose a family member or close contact. This doesn’t happen often but I do get clients who have no one to be their executor/trustee, either because they have a very reduced circle of family and friends, for whatever reason, or because there is no one they trust to take on that role. Sometimes there is a combined situation where they want to nominate family members but recognise that those people will need help from a professional, maybe because their estate is complex, or the circumstances are complicated.

Using a PROFESSIONAL EXECUTOR, either solely or combined with others, can often be the solution. Here are some advantages and disadvantages associated with using a professional executor:

Advantages

- They have the expertise to take on what can often be a very onerous role
- The liability is with them rather than the designated family member
- Administering an estate takes a lot of time, effort and diligence which many lay people do not have
- They understand and can deal with the income tax implications at death
- They understand and can deal with the inheritance tax implications at death
- They understand the reporting procedures to HMRC at death, including the registration of trusts on the Trust Registration System
- They will set up appropriate trusts dictated by the Will
- They will be objective over decisions that may be emotive for family members
- Some companies pay all costs upfront so that your family doesn't have to and won't expect to be paid until funds have been released from the estate
- They can deal with charities, which can be quite challenging
- They will set up appropriate bank accounts and accounting systems
- Professionals can take away any arguments and hassle that plague families at a difficult time which can be fuelled by the rigour of estate administration

Disadvantages

- They will charge a fee for their services whereas family members tend to work for free
- The control is taken away from the family, although most companies will offer various degrees of engagement regarding the estate
- Elysium Wills and Estate Planning Services has a bank of professional executors that it can recommend so you can select the one that best fits your family dynamic
- When people decide to nominate a professional executor in their Will, we always suggest that they ensure the professional concerned would renounce for free at the time of death just in case the family decide that their services are no longer needed
- Other families/executors come back to us at death and ask for help in administering their loved one’s estate and we can then refer them to our bank of professionals

Book your free preliminary will and estate planning consultation today:

0203 918 4234
[email protected]

18/06/2026

17/06/2026

✒️ Here are our top tips to consider when writing a Will 🖋️

🤔 Who are your executors? Would you consider them good at administering estates? Assuming your children will eventually take over this role, what age would you consider them able to do this job?

💍 If you are cohabiting, would you like your Will to remain in force if you get married, or do you want to rewrite it?

🏖️ Do you have any property abroad? Have you written a foreign Will?

⚰️ What type of funeral arrangements would you like in place?

🫁 Would you like to donate your organs?

👨‍👧‍👦 If you have minor children, who will be the guardians of these children? Do you want temporary guardians in place while the permanent guardians make arrangements? Will the guardians have enough funds in place to raise your children?

💼 Do you own a business? Would you like anyone to carry on the business after your passing, such as a business trustee? Have you made provisions for your family that they will get a lump sum from any money lost from your business?

💻 Digital assets - Can people access these when you pass away? Do you monetise any as an ongoing concern?

🎁 Do you have any gifts of sentimental value that you would like to pass on to others?

🏡 Do you want to leave a gift of property to any particular person or people?

👫🏻 Do you want to leave a lifetime tenancy in your house to your cohabiting partner? Will there be conditions attached to this?

💷 Who will pay the estate inheritance tax?

💎 What will happen to your personal possessions?

❌ Are you deliberately excluding any person from your Will?

💔 In the event of future separation from your partner, do you still want them to benefit from your Will?

🐶 Would you like to make any provisions for pets?

💰 Do you want to ensure any gifts of money to your children are equalised upon your passing?

💳 Does anyone owe you money via debts? Would you like this money to continue to be paid to your estate?

willwriter willwriting estateplanningattorney

04/06/2026

What are the benefits of putting a Discretionary Trust in place?

Do you want to protect your estate against SIDEWAYS DISINHERITANCE (your partner/ spouse remarrying in the future)

Do you want to put TRUSTEES in place to manage your property / assets long-term for the benefit of beneficiaries?

Do you want to protect your beneficiaries from DIVORCE, VULNERABILITIES and BANKRUPTCIES throughout their lifetime?

Do you want to add a LETTER OF WISHES which articulates how you want your estate funds to be administered ie) for university fees, school trips and upbringing.

Do you want to include a VULNERABLE BENEFICIARY TRUST in your will for a vulnerable or disabled person who is financially dependent on you!?

❤️

03/06/2026

Happy mid week It was our pleasure to help you Najwmana! 🤩

02/06/2026

A Lasting Power of Attorney is a legal document which allows an individual (Donor) to appoint a person of their own choice (an Attorney) to look after their affairs should they, at a later stage, no longer wish to make these decisions or can not manage their affairs themselves.

There are TWO types of LPA which are 1) Property & Financial affairs or 2) Health and Welfare. BOTH are incredibly important and without them individuals endure a costly and time consuming application process to the Court of Protection.

&PropertyLPA &WelfareLPA

29/05/2026

Great time in Rhodes with great food, activities, scenary and above all great company 🥰🤩

12/05/2026

I can never get tired of Richmond! Such beautiful scenery and lovely company from a dear old friend! Bars, restaurants and great conversations! 💖

11/05/2026

Where there is a will there is a way! But what if there isn't. Right now, according to SRA legal research, a staggering £40 million people do not have a valid will on place in the UK. An alarming 67% of UK adults do not have a will in place or have one that is out of date!!!
Why would you give your hard earned estate away to people you have never met just by not putting a few simple documents in place should the worst happen!

# Courtofprotection