Complex Probate and Wills

An Oxford family says it is living on the breadline because of delays in the Court of Protection system which means compensation awarded to them following a road accident is not being paid.

Vincent Mullen from Headington is due to receive hundreds of thousands of pounds following a court settlement in May. However, his wife, Suzy, says their efforts to sort out the compensation with the Court Funds Office have left them confused and frustrated.

“We have endured seven years of hardship following my husband’s accident,” says Suzy Mullen. “When the settlement was finally reached we were understandably relieved.”

“Without the help and generosity of my own family we simply would not have been able to cope. We have all this money due us but are still having to rely on my family and borrow my niece’s car because the money is so slow at coming through.”

Communication with officers at the Court Funds Office, part of the Court of Protection, has become so protracted that Mrs Mullen has asked her solicitor, Michael Berrett of Wantage law firm, Charles Lucas & Marshall to deal with the Court on her behalf.

He says the delays the Mullens are experiencing are typical and part of a widespread problem.

“I have represented this family from the very start of the legal process and was delighted we eventually reached what was a fair and reasonable settlement,” he said.

“Not unreasonably, my client wants to buy a property more suitable for them than the one they are living in which is privately rented. We made a prompt application for the money to be released but are still waiting.

“There has to be a better way of doing things I would be interested to know if other people are experiencing the same problems and frustrations. This regime is designed to protect people’s finances but it is only fair that it facilitates access to those finances in order that people can improve the quality of their life.”

For further information please contact Michael Berrett on 01235 771234  or michael.berrett@clmlaw.co.uk

Child Trust Funds

Parents and grandparents of children with disabilities should take steps to ensure that assets they want to leave to their disabled child do not deny them means-tested benefits when they become adults.

Simon Mee, a wills and estate planning specialist with law firm, Charles Lucas & Marshall says the simplest way of achieving this is by setting up a trust fund.

“This enables money or assets that parents, grandparents or other family members want to leave to the child to be ring-fenced,” he says. “The benefits and care structure they have set in place over many years will not then be jeopardised when the child becomes an adult.”

Sadly, many families discover too late that money or assets which have been set aside through a will to improve the welfare of a disabled family member can, in fact, create additional problems for that beneficiary. This may be because it affects the disabled person’s right to state support or the beneficiary may not be able to manage the money themselves.

“All benefits are mean tested with a sliding scale of entitlement,” says Simon Mee. “What is intended as a generous and responsible gesture can end up having a negative impact on the disabled person’s quality of living.

“These problems can be avoided by setting up a trust fund to manage the assets on behalf of the beneficiary. The Trust can appoint trustees to manage the fund and the person setting up the Trust can also write a letter of wishes, setting out their intentions and wishes as to how the trust fund should be managed.”

One mother who has set up a trust fund for her daughter is Elly Hase of Newbury. A mother of two, Elly’s oldest child, Ciara, six, was born with a rare chromosome disorder which means her levels of understanding are lower than other children her age. Doctors do not know how Ciara’s condition will progress.

“As I was getting divorced I thought it also seemed sensible to make a new will,” said Elly. “I wanted to make provision for my four year old son but also realised I needed to protect Ciara. The last thing I want is for the care structure we are developing for her to be taken away.

“It does mean, via my letter of wishes, I have leant heavily on my trustees to make decisions for Ciara. Equally though, my parents, who want to leave money for Ciara in their own wills, can now use the trust fund to do that and that gives them peace of mind .”

For further information please contact Simon Mee on 01635 521212 or simon.mee@clmlaw.co.uk

Lyn Ellins - Wills Expert

Calls are growing for greater regulation of will-writers following a Panorama programme that exposed the risks and the sharp practices used by many unregulated will-writers.

Lyn Ellins, a lawyer Swindon firm, Charles Lucas & Marshall says her firm have been trying to highlight this problem for many years – following a series of botched cases where people have had to come to them for legal advice.

“Many of these will-writers claim to be the cheap option but often there are hidden costs and families end up paying additional money because they have to come to a lawyer to sort out the mess,” she says.

Lyn Ellis says some of the mistakes they have had to sort out have been as simple as not getting a will witnessed properly.

“A family came to me because they knew their father had wanted to give money to a charity. However because the will had not been witnessed properly it was invalid so their father was officially intestate ie he had not made a will.

“We had to apply for a grant so we could administer the will, then write a deed of variation which all the beneficiaries had to agree and sign.

“Only then could we collect in the money from the father’s estate and distribute it as he had wanted.  The costs were something like double what they should have been, which reduced the net estate and meant the charity and the family all got less.”

Unlike many will-writers, solicitors are qualified to write wills and are up to date with legislation. If anything should anything go wrong – their obligatory insurance cover means clients are protected against errors.

“Most law firms are happy to offer a free half hour to check a will or advise on making one,” says Lyn Ellins. “They will even visit the client at home if they cannot make it into the office. They will also give you a clear idea of cost from the start.”

Charles Lucas & Marshall has added its support to the growing Law Society campaign to introduce greater regulation of will-writers and provide consumers with more protection.

You can contact Lyn Ellins on 01793 511055 or lyn.ellins@clmlaw.co.uk

Were you as horrified as I was by the Panorama programme on Monday evening?

It highligted problems with unqualified ‘Will-Writing’ firms who appear to offer to draw up your will for as little as £30, then pressurises the elderly into signing up for a package which costs over £2,000.

One interviewee called the firm who did a spectacularly bad job on the estate for which she should have been a beneficiary as “cowboys”.

Solicitors often get a bad name for high costs, long-delays and impenetrable jargon but this programme showed just how vulnerable clients are who go to unregulated and uninsured companies.

Remember when reading those attractive adverts – if it looks too good to be true – it probably is.

In April 2009, great-grandmother Betty Figg was snatched by social workers against the wishes of her daughter, her former carer.

Social workers arrived with police and a battering ram to remove the 86-year-old woman suffering from dementia from her daughter’s house.

The media quickly spread pictures and video footage of Betty being taken from the house in her wheelchair with a towel thrown over her head.

It seems social services did not agree with Betty’s daughter that it was in Betty’s best interests to be cared by her daughter in a specially converted room, in her daughter’s home.

Could this happen to you and your family?

There is a way that it can be avoided; by giving a health and welfare lasting power of attorney to a family member, social services are prevented from making care decisions.

Without this document, social services can make decisions on behalf a vulnerable person, if they think they lack mental capacity and believe it is in their best interests.

They do not have to follow what the family want and cannot be liable for their decisions.

Simon Mee, of Charles Lucas & Marshall Solicitors, of Newbury, and a member Solicitors for the Elderly, is encouraging all older people to plan ahead and make a health and welfare lasting power of attorney.

‘It is an important document and sensible to get advice about the choices you have.

What happened to Mrs Figg may never happen to you, but if it does, you and your family will be glad you made the power.’

Please contact Simon Mee on 01635 521212 or simon.mee@clmlaw.co.uk

Legal disputes over wills are on the rise as more families are prepared to go to court to wage war and claim their inheritance.

Simon Mee, a specialist in wills and estate planning at solicitors, Charles Lucas & Marshall says the firm has seen a sharp increase in people seeking the best way of contesting a will.

“There are many reasons for this,” says Simon Mee. “Disputes can arise because couples live together but don’t get married. Quite often, the deceased has been married more than once, which may leave their will open to dispute by step children or children from previous marriages.”

“We are also living longer and people tend to have more sizeable estates these days. In other words, there is more for people to go at.”

The number of cases among warring families which had to be settled in the High Court last year rose to 228, compared to a mere 83 in 2006. However the number of wills which were legally disputed was far higher as wherever possible solicitors seek to settle the dispute before it reaches court.

“As we live longer, more people are challenging wills on the grounds of mental incapacity,” said Simon Mee. “More people are also leaving their money to charities even when they have children – particularly if they haven’t spoken to their children for years or their children have not provided support during their old age.”

One of the biggest causes of contention is when the deceased has left their estate to a second wife and has not made any direct provision in his will for children from the first marriage.

“This can get very complicated,” added Simon Mee. “But people are having fewer qualms about taking the matter to court if they feel they have been unfairly treated.”

Please contact Simon Mee on 01635 521212 or simon.mee@clmlaw.co.uk