Wealth Structuring Legal Services

When managing wealth, individuals and families usually have two main objectives - to have sufficient funds to support their lifestyle, and to ensure their estate is distributed fairly according to their wishes after they die.

While there is a valid and interesting economic debate to be had around whether tax increases as opposed to tax competitiveness are the way forward, we encourage you to take action now in line with your own family values and objectives, rather than short term tax implications. This is the most important place to start ahead of documenting your wishes in a Will.

What do I need to consider when drafting a Will?

A Will is perhaps the most important document a person ever signs. If you die without making a Will, then it is left to the law to determine who inherits your property and who is responsible for administering your estate and distributing your property. This may lead to unwanted and/or uncertain succession and tax consequences. The process of preparing a Will ensures that loved ones are provided for in the manner you want, and offers great peace of mind.  It also gives the opportunity to consider the likely tax exposure on your death, avoiding any unnecessary payments.

How can I ensure my Will is utilising the most efficient structure for my personal and family values?

We will work with you to help you grow, preserve and distribute your wealth amongst the generations during your lifetime and after death. The ways in which you can manage this vary depending on your personal circumstances and the tax requirements at any given time. These could involve lifetime giving or holding assets through trusts and other asset protection structures.

These structures will also depend on your residency and domicile status, whether your assets are currently held in trusts, or whether you are a landowner or business owner, with assets in either the UK or abroad. We are able to assess your personal circumstances in the round, and find pragmatic and commercial solutions to complex situations. Please click on the links above to find out more about how we advise you in these specific circumstances.

Probate and estate administration: What will happen following my death?

It is important that these matters are administered sensitively and efficiently. We can assist with anything and everything that is required following a death including:

• obtaining grants of representation (typically, a grant of probate) both overseas and in the UK;
• advising on complex succession issues;
• advising executors (together or individually) on their responsibilities; 
• providing a full tax compliance service in estate administration and to ensure the most tax effective devolution of the estate; and
• advising on beneficiary’s / beneficiaries’ rights.

For more information about trust establishment and administration, please click here.

International Estate Services

The world is getting smaller and families are becoming increasingly international. Many British people own property abroad and have connections to more than one jurisdiction. Conversely, many foreign nationals have property in the UK, with some families holding assets in several different countries.

International estates often become more complex when the owner dies, raising a number of legal, tax and practical issues. They can be complicated to administer and it is important that the implications and procedures under the various different legal systems are understood and co-ordinated. 

We regularly deal both with lifetime planning for those with international estates and the post-death administration.  These can range from fairly straightforward UK clients with, say, a villa in Spain to the wealthiest international families with assets and structures in several jurisdictions. Our dedicated team of estate planning and probate/estate administration specialists have considerable experience of the issues involved and can call on both locally qualified lawyers in our office locations and our extensive network of overseas intermediaries to ensure a smooth, tactful and efficient process.

From time to time disputes arise between family members over the division of an estate. We work closely with our private wealth disputes team to minimise the risk of this occurring and, where necessary, to ensure that matters are resolved satisfactorily.  

The key, whether carrying out lifetime estate planning or dealing with the affairs of someone who has died, is in the co-ordination of that advice, resolving any conflict of laws and developing an overall strategy to ensure that the intended heirs inherit the right assets with the minimum tax, cost and delay.