Wills, Charitable Giving & Tax - it's more important than ever to get good advice

Many people may be aware that leaving a gift to charity upon their death will not be subject to inheritance tax. More people are also becoming aware of the benefits of agreeing to Gift Aid in respect of donations made from their income.

However, as charities are also feeling the adverse effects of the country’s current economic plight, for those people who are minded to, there are options available where you can benefit your favourite charities other than on death and which may also have beneficial consequences for your own tax position.

Making a cash gift holds no taxation consequences for either the recipient or the donor, and similarly, people with share portfolios could consider transferring the shares directly to a charity as, under current legislation such a gift would not be subject to Capital Gains Tax as a disposal by the individual - it would also provide income tax relief. It's worth bearing in mind, however, that if the shares would create a loss in the hands of the individual, such loss cannot be claimed on a transfer of shares to a charity.

Of course, if you are thinking about making any gifts you should always consider your own personal finances and whether you can afford to make a gift and this is especially true for those who are either receiving care at home through a Local Authority or are already in residential or nursing home accommodation. Any person considering a substantial donation should seek advice from their solicitor.

At FDC Law our specialists are always available to discuss any of these issues.
For more information contact us via the website.

FDC Law talks to BBC Radio about legal aid cutting by Government

Divorce and separation are never easy, but they could be about to get a lot harder.

Under plans contained in the government’s Green Paper on Legal Aid, Legal Aid will cease to be available for anyone seeking a divorce, or to resolve issues relating to children or finances following a separation, save in very limited circumstances, where children are at risk of being taken into Care, or where there are high levels of Domestic Violence.

Marjorie Taylor, head of the Family law department, spoke to BBC Somerset’s Matt Faulkner, on Tuesday 8th February, about the impact of the cuts:

For more information on this story, click here:

Charities highlight Will-Writer's shoddy Wills

A survey of over 50 charities by Remember A Charity found unanimous support for the regulation of the will-writing sector as a third of those surveyed had experienced “negative impacts of the sector not being regulated”, such as loss of income, whilst poorly drafted wills had given 53% of them problems.

As a result, 52% of charities had had to engage solicitors to sort out the problems and 48% reported that the time to get the money was significantly increased. The survey also found that a third received a smaller than expected legacies and 11% lost the legacies entirely.

Remember A Charity is part if the Institute of Fundraising, with a separate membership of over 140 charities, including 9 of the top 10 charities by voluntary income. The survey was conducted as part of Remember A Charity’s response to the Legal Services Consumer Panel’s call for evidence as it investigates the need for regulation of the sector.

The House of Commons has produced a paper on the regulation of will-writers to assist MPs in the debate. The paper can be found here.

If you need help with your Will, please get in touch with FDC-Law via our website.

Does my divorce mean I am a failure?

This question hits a very raw nerve for many people facing divorce. Marriage, we were always taught, is for life - otherwise why bother getting married? So when it doesn’t last a lifetime, it seems someone must be to blame. “Maybe it’s me. Maybe I should have spoken up earlier. Maybe I should have seen it coming. Maybe I was too passive, too bossy, too preoccupied. Maybe I’m just useless at relationships.” Sound familiar?

Collaborative Law

There are all kinds of other mishaps in life that we easily forgive ourselves for, but the prospect of divorce can press all our self-blame buttons. Why?

Recent research conducted by a collaborative family lawyer into what marriage means to us discovered that it cuts across all the key reference points we use for conceptualising our world and our place within it. It contributes to our understanding of ourselves and others in legal, moral, emotional, political and developmental terms. You don’t even have to like or approve of marriage for it to hold this level of impact. In fact, not liking it indicates its power just as much as liking it does.

Now, if we take just one of those domains - moral - and remind ourselves that our cultural history is steeped with the notion that marriage is good - so divorce, therefore, is bad - it instantly becomes clear why your divorce is making you feel you’re suddenly living on the wrong side of the tracks, whether it was your choice or not. This is a feeling, remember, not a thought. Rationally you may know the relationship was irreparable, going nowhere, over. But this isn’t enough to dispel those gnawings of primitive, reactive guilt and sense of failure.

It might surprise you to know that Collaborative Practice takes all this into account. Whether the person you’re working with is a Family Consultant (Counsellor/Psychotherapist), a lawyer or a financial adviser, they will be listening to what’s happened, how you feel about it and what you need, but never judging you. Those moralising days are long gone. This holistic interdisciplinary approach just focuses on helping you achieve whatever it is you need to build the best future for your children, yourself and your ex, emotionally, practically and financially.

It can be a tough challenge, but if by working together your divorce can be kept out of court, that’s a success, not a failure.

I urge you to find out more about Collaborative Family Practice by contacting Marjorie Taylor or Andrea Boutcher here at FDC Law, or any of the other specially trained collaborative lawyers in B&NES , Somerset & Wiltshire, who are willing and able to assist you. Full details and names of all local Collaborative practitioners can be found on the website http://www.collaborativefamilylawyers.co.uk/

A better divorce?

Collaborative Law

24th January 2011 saw the start of Collaborative Week 2011, an initiative by collaborative family law practitioners to raise awareness of collaborative law in the UK.

Collaborative family law is a fairly new process on offer to separating couples, which aims to allow them to sort out their differences more amicably and less confrontationally in a series of meetings with the separating couple and their lawyers - and without the need to go to court.

To mark the launch of Collaborative Week 2011, family consultants and financial planners in the Bath and North East Somerset area have come together to raise awareness of collaborative law.

A photo and video shoot took place in the middle of Bath’s prestigious Queen Square, where the practitioners prepared a visual comparison between divorce by litigation and divorce by collaboration.

The promotion built on the Collaborative Week’s campaign image of frayed rope, ready to snap, with the message “Divorcing – Where Do You Go From Here?”. They have also produced a short video which shows how the tug of war of traditional litigation compares with the round table approach of collaborative law.

You can also find out more about collaborative law here: FDC Law : Collaborative Week 2011 where Marjorie Taylor and Andrea Boutcher, collaborative lawyers with FDC Law at our Midsomer Norton and Frome offices respectively, explain a little bit more about the promotional week and the service itself.

"Can't take it with you” (Wills)

Last Friday, 14th January 2011, saw the start of a new BBC series.

Make a Will

The 6 part series titled “Can’t Take It With You” aims to explore the complex issues that can arise when drafting a will.

Here at FDC Law, we have been highlighting the dangers of dying without making a properly drafted will for many years and it is encouraging to see a serious and entertaining piece of television addressing this issue.

The programmes are hosted by Sir Gerry Robinson in conjunction with Sue Medder, a wills solicitor and partner with Withers.

The first programme highlighted the difficulties that can be encountered, and the emotions that can be raised, when making important decisions about who will benefit from an individual’s estate on death. The programme was particularly concerned with two issues – one, the conflicts over charitable giving and, two, the complexities that can arise when considering beneficiaries after second marriages.

Two couples featured and of the first couple, Lesley wanted the leave half the family home to charity but her husband, David, wanted it all to be left to his two sons from a previous marriage.

The second family, saw army Major Tom, who was on route to Bagdad, wanting to make a will that included his two step daughters while his wife, Keira, was against the principle of inheritance and wanted everything they jointly owned left to charity.

The programme made for interesting viewing with both couples needing to face some uncomfortable home truths before they made their decisions.

The episode also contained a section where potential executors under the wills were gathered together in a room over dinner to discuss the various issues. This section highlighted the careful consideration that needs to be given when choosing executors and, following some frank exchanges during the dinner, David ended up changing his original decision on who would be the executors under his will.

Deciding who gets what in a will can be one of the toughest decisions anyone has to make but this programme also highlighted the clear dangers in not making appropriate provisions before death and the implications that that could have on the families left behind.

If the first episode is anything to go on, the remaining five programmes will be well worth watching.

Care Home Fees could wipe out Wills.

Care home fees continue to be an issue that dominates the headlines and remain a particular concern to both the elderly and their families.

First, there is the question of whether people who are rightly entitled to care home funding are getting that help. Last year, BBC Panorama aired a programme entitled “The NHS National Homes Swindle” which highlighted the fact that some NHS Trusts were misapplying the eligibility criteria and denying funding to those who should have been entitled to it.

Essentially, if your funding needs relate to one of a list of qualifying medical needs, then funding should be available whereas if the care is for social care then the funding needs to be paid for by the individual.

There does seem to have been greater clarity since the programme aired although, as a firm, our elderly client specialists are still dealing with cases where funding has been refused.

More recently, the Law Society has issued a report suggesting that increasing care home fees may mean that assets in wills will be wiped out, leaving nothing for the elderly to pass on to their beneficiaries. This comes hot on the heels of Government proposals to address the inevitable pressure on long term care as life expectancy increases. Last year, Age UK estimated average care home fees at £470 per week (1) which prompted the Law Society to warn that many wills may need reviewing as the assets of residents in care continue to deplete and they suggest that people should seek legal advice on these issues before it is too late.

This concern also followed a report that more that more than 20,000 pensioners had to sell their homes last year to pay for their care home fees – an increase of 17% in the past 5 years.

Darrell Collins, partner with FDC Law and member of the Solicitors for the Elderly, said, “Many people will consider it unfair that people have saved and lived carefully all their lives only to see their assets wiped out because of care home fees. Also, what many people do not realise is that consultation with a specialist solicitor in this area of law to ensure that you have the right will, can mean that such a situation does not arise in the first place. Anybody who is worried about care costs should contact a specialist solicitor so they can receive the best advice on what can be done to help.”

(1) Age UK’s figures were based on research by healthcare analysts, Laing & Buisson, and the House of Commons library.