Law4All

24/10/2023

A property is normally the most valuable asset that someone owns, so it's important to understand what actually happens to it once you've died. There are a number of things to consider. Firstly, it depends on how the property is owned.

In England & Wales, if you own a property in your sole name then what happens to this when you die is relatively straightforward. If you have made a Will, the property would be dealt with in accordance with the terms of the Will. If you die without a Will, inheritance laws called the Rules of Intestacy would decide who gets what. If you have no living family members your property and all your possessions will go to the Crown.

If you own a property jointly with someone else then it's important to know that there are two ways you could own this; either as Joint Tenants or Tenants in Common. How you jointly own the property will determine what happens to your share when you die.

When purchasing a property with someone else, you should be given the option by your Conveyancing practitioner as to whether you want to own the property as Joint Tenants or Tenants in Common. You should consider this choice carefully and fully understand the implications of each.

Joint Tenants and Right of Survivorship - Owning a property with someone else as Joint Tenants means that you own 100% of the property jointly with the other owner, with neither of you having a defined share. When you die, the property automatically passes to the surviving joint tenant under the Right of Survivorship.
A property owned as Joint Tenants cannot be passed under the terms of your Will. Instead, the Right of Survivorship will apply regardless of what your Will states.

How To Pass On a Jointly Owned Property In Your Will - If you own property as Joint Tenants and you want to leave your share of the property to someone other than the joint owner under the terms of your Will, you must change the property ownership to Tenants in Common instead. This means that you will each own a specific share of the property, which is commonly 50% (although this can vary depending each person's financial contribution). You can then leave your share of the property to whomever you choose in your Will.

If you already own a property jointly as Tenants in Common and you have not yet made a Will or placed your share into Trust, then the Rules of Intestacy will determine what happens to your share when you die. The Rules of Intestacy place your relatives in order of priority and they do not recognise certain family members such as cohabiting partners or step-children.

If you own or are purchasing a property as Tenants in Common then the only way to ensure your share is passed on in line with your wishes is to make a Will or place your share into a Trust for your chosen beneficiaries.

Speak to us at LAW4ALL today about Wills and Property Trusts.

11/09/2023

DID YOU KNOW??

A Trust can help ensure that your assets (money, investments, land or property) are protected during your lifetime for the benefit of your family and their descendants. Some examples are detailed below:-

Protection against “Sideways Disinheritance”- Prevent your direct bloodline (children and grandchildren) losing out in the event of your dying and your surviving partner remarrying. If you simply leave your estate to your partner and they remarry and subsequently die, it is common for the estate your partner inherited from you to pass to the family of the new partner. A Trust can stop this.

Protecting the vulnerable - Prevent the situation arising whereby a child with disabilities could lose benefits if they inherit from you through a Will. Inheriting via a Trust means that benefits are not affected.

Protecting your Children’s inheritance - Prevent an inheritance left to a child who is facing problems (divorce, bankruptcy, addition disorder or many other situations which are often impossible to predict) can be distributed to that child in such a way that it won’t be squandered or misused.

Probate Costs - Any assets that are held in a Trust can be distributed immediately – thereby removing the need, and the huge cost and time delays, of probate.

Speak to us today at LAW4ALL to discuss your specific requirements

27/02/2023

Did you know that if you marry or re-marry any Will that you had in place is generally automatically revoked (unless you made special provision in your existing Will)!!

DON'T GET CAUGHT OUT. Speak to us al LAW4ALL for advice on Wills, Trusts, LPA's and Probate assistance.

18/02/2023

WHERE TO KEEP A WILL ONCE CREATED..

Once a will has been made, it should be kept in a safe place and other documents should not be attached to it. There are a number of places where you can keep a will:-

at home
with a solicitor or accountant
at a bank

at the Principal Registry of the Family Division of the High Court, a District Registry or Probate Sub-Registry for safe keeping. If you wish to deposit a will in this way you should visit the District Registry or Probate Sub-Registry or write to:

Probate Department (England and Wales)

Principal Registry of the Family Division
Looking for copies of a will after someone dies
Someone close to you may have died and you think they made a will but you can't find one in their home.

Check to see if you can find a certificate of deposit, which will have been sent to them if they arranged for the will to be kept by the Principal Registry of the Family Division.

Even if you can't find a certificate of deposit, you can still check with the Registry to see if they hold the will. If the person died in a care home or a hospital you could check to see if the will was left with them.

You should also contact the person's solicitor, accountant or bank to see if they hold the will.

The person who has died, or their solicitor, may have registered their will with a commercial organisation such as Certainty (www.certainty.co.uk) and, after the person's death, you can pay for a search of the wills registered on the company's database.

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www.law4all.co.uk

Law4All provides cost effective legal services for everyone, covering wills, trusts, LPA's and Probate services thoughout cheshire and the UK.

18/02/2023

PROBATE SERVICES
Help When You Need It Most

After you die, a legal process known as Probate will need to be carried out by the person you nominate to administer your estate, known as the Executor. We offer a range of options to support your loved ones and we can help them to make the Probate process as smooth as possible.

18/02/2023

LAW4ALL WELCOMES
YOU
Cost Effective Legal Services For Everyone!

18/02/2023

LASTING POWER OF ATTORNEY (LPA)
Helping Plan For The Unexpected

You know you need a Will to protect your family and ensure your wishes are respected after you are gone. But what happens if you lose the ability to make decisions while you are still alive? A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) lets you appoint people you trust to make decisions on your behalf, should you lose mental capacity to do so yourself.

18/02/2023

WILLS
Do The Right Thing

You work hard all your life to build up your assets. Laying out where you want them to go after you die, a Will is one of the most important legal documents you will ever have. Preventing unnecessary pain, stress and worry for your family and loved ones, making a Will is not something to put off until later .

18/02/2023

LAW4ALL Cheshire
Based in Widnes, Cheshire, at LAW4ALL we provide expert legal advice, that includes all types of legal problems which can be carried out as Paralegals. Any reserved legal activities are passed to our network of specialist solicitors whom we have collaborated with for many years. This allows us to keep costs down and savings are passed to our clients.

Our paralegal staff have a combined working experience of over 100 years. This demonstrates our vast experience in legal matters and provides our clients with the comfort and knowledge that they are in safe hands.



We also provide Will writing and Estate Planning Services such as LPA's, Trusts and Probate assistance to our Clients. This allows to be a One-Stop-Shop for legal services. We realise that convenience for Clients is essential, so we will happily take appointments at their homes or offices throughout the North West, North Wales and Yorkshire regions.