The Wills and Estates Team, led by Lisa Harper, is long established and has extensive experience.
We pride ourselves on providing a service which is both friendly and professional, and on understanding our clients' objectives. We recognise that in many instances we will be advising you during a very difficult and distressing time.
We have car parking and easy access for the disabled at our Colchester and Clacton offices, and we offer home visits for those unable to travel.
We are well placed to act for you in the preparation of Wills, the administration of estates, inheritance tax planning and the creation and management of trusts, as well as in registering Enduring Powers of Attorney, preparing Lasting Powers of Attorney and supporting the elderly and vulnerable through applications to the Court of Protection.
We can advise you on the various taxation issues which arise in the administration of estates and in the preparation of Wills.
Wills
- Preparing Wills and amendments
- Advance Directives dealing with life-sustaining medical procedures
- Statutory Wills for those who are mentally incapacitated
Powers of Attorney and Court of Protection
- Preparing Lasting Powers of Attorney
- Registering Enduring Powers of Attorney
- Applications to the Court of Protection
- Advice for Deputies of the Court of Protection
Administration of Estates
- Estate administration
- Distribution of assets
- The preparation of Deeds of Variation
- Guidance on contested Wills
- Advice on inheritance tax
Trusts
- Advising on Will trusts
- Preparing lifetime trusts
- Administering on Inheritance tax
Your digital legacy – what happens to your virtual life after your death?
18 April 2013: Most people now have email accounts and online social network accounts such as Hotmail, Google Mail, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. But what happens to these accounts after your death? Can your relatives close them down? Can they access the contents? Do you want them to?
To download the PDF version of this article, please click here.
Government proposals for changes to social care costs
20 February 2013: Janette Wand of Thompson Smith and Puxon’s Wills and Estates team has reviewed the information available to date and produced the following summary.
To download a PDF copy of the summary please click here.
NEW RECRUIT IN THE TS&P WILLS AND PROBATE TEAM
October 24 2012: Leading Colchester and Clacton law firm, Thompson Smith & Puxon (TS&P) is pleased to welcome solicitor Janette Wand to its Wills and Probate team.
All too often we are approached by a family member or friend of a person who has started to, or has, become mentally incapable of making their own decisions, asking for help in dealing with that person’s financial affairs or matters concerning their general health and welfare. Sadly, it is usually too late for that person to give instructions to us to prepare what is known as a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) as a result of their diminishing ability to make decisions.
May 25 2012: Our farming clients often come to us at Thompson Smith & Puxon Solicitors to make Wills and tell us one of their several children is heavily involved in the farming business, with their other children only playing a minor role, or living far away and having nothing to do with the farming business at all. All the same, the parents want to be fair to all their children.
Inheritance Tax - How does it work?
One of the trickiest parts of administering an estate is working out whether inheritance tax is payable and, if so, how much. Executors must consider not only what passes under the Will, but the deceased’s gifts during the last seven years. When he made them, these gifts were potentially exempt from tax. Click here to download a PDF copy of this article.
A surprising number of people have not bothered to make a Will.
Perhaps they assume there is no need? Occasionally, that is correct. But most often it is seriously wrong.
There may come a time when, because of physical problems, it would be more convenient for a relative or friend to deal with your financial affairs. Such help would be vital if you were to lose your mental faculties.
A Will appoints executors to administer the deceased’s estate. If there is no Will, then certain relatives, entitled to the estate under the “rules of intestacy”, can apply to the Court to appoint administrators.
Alison Laver – Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives
Alison joined the firm in 1999 as a secretary, before developing into a paralegal role. She started studying to become a Chartered Legal Executive in 2010 and on the way to successfully completing her Level 3 Diploma in Law and Practice, also completed the Level 3 Certificate in Elderly Client Practice.
She advises her clients about their Wills, Lasting Powers of Attorney and Court of Protection matters, and also deals with estate administration.
Tel: 01255 254264
Email: alaver@tsplegal.com