1. The Visit

2. The Services We Can Offer

THE VISIT

Once our appointment has been confirmed we will visit you at your home to discuss your Will instructions.  We will have already sent you some ideas you may wish to consider before we meet as part of our confirmation pack. 

Not only is it more convenient for you to discuss your Will requirements at your home but feedback from our clients tell us that people tend to find the experience much less stressful than they had anticipated. Our aim is to provide a highly professional yet relaxed experience in dealing with, what can be, a difficult subject.  The appointment should take between 60 to 90 minutes.

During the appointment we cover various subjects including;

• A basic single or mirror Will
• long term care planning (care home fees)
• what you wish to happen if you should die and your spouse remarries
• whether your need a Lasting Power of Attorneys
• disabled discretionary trusts
• the distribution of your estate for asset preservation purposes
• heirloom trusts

All or none of the above subjects may be relevant to you, which we will not know until we have been able to discuss your estate and requirements in detail.  For more information on these services, see below.

Once we have taken your instructions, we will then send you your draught Will within 7 to 10 days.  We will then work on this draught with you until you are happy and in agreement with the result.  We will then visit you again to ensure your Wills are signed and witnessed correctly.  Your Will is then legally binding.

Then, for your peace of mind and document security, we are happy to store your Will with in our Willstore facility, for a small annual charge.  This will be discussed with you at your initial appointment.

After 3 years, we will write to you to discuss the possible changes that have occurred in your personal circumstances that may have affected your Will.  If appropriate, we can then arrange to rewrite your Will.

THE SERVICES THAT WE CAN OFFER YOU

• A Basic Single or Mirror Will
• Long Term Care Planning/ the Protective Property Trust
• Sideways Disinheritance/ protecting your estate if your spouse should remarry after your death
• Lasting Power of Attorneys
• The Disabled Discretionary Trust
• Inheritance Planning, IOU Discretionary Trust
• Advance Directives or Living Wills
• Asset Preservation Planning
• Heirloom Trusts

Basic Single or Mirror Will

A basic single Will or a Mirror Will for a couple where each make a Will,  mirroring each others wishes i.e. the whole estate to each other on first death then everything to the children when you both pass away.

Long Term Care Planning/ the Protective Property Trust

If a widow/ widower or single person is taken into care then, under the Community Care Act 1990, the local council have the right by law to seize their home, put it up for sale and use the proceeds to support their long-term care costs. Obviously, if this happened then it might mean that when they eventually die there could be very little of their estate left for their surviving family.

How can you avoid this happening?
It is illegal to deliberately transfer your own property to relatives or trusts if your prime motive is to avoid paying long-term care costs. However, it is not illegal for you and your partner to each make a provision in a Will, that upon the first death, the deceased's half-share of the family assets and/or home, is placed in trust for their children or other beneficiaries, instead of passing direct to the surviving partner.

The Protective Property Trust Will  that we can offer has been specially designed for this purpose. It keeps the assets and/or share of the home owned by the deceased partner away from the council's reach while at the same time allowing the surviving partner to continue benefiting from the assets and/or share of the home within the trust. On their death the assets and/or share of the home owned by the trust together with whatever is left of the assets of the second partner can be given to the surviving family.

Sideways Disinheritance/ protecting your estate if your spouse should remarry after your death

This works in a similar way to the above Protective Trust, ensuring that half the value of your home is protected for your children rather than passing directly to your partner and therefore potentially to their future spouse and their family.

Lasting Power of Attorneys

Most people are unaware that if you have any of your affairs in your name only, nobody can manage them on your behalf unless you have given your written permission, that includes your spouse. If you should then become mentally incapacitated through old age, or illness or accident, that permission ceases and no one can manage your affairs unless you have previously drawn up an Lasting Power of Attorneys. A Lasting Power of Attorney can give powers to your attorneys to assist in managing your financial affairs, both before and after mental incapacity - you can also draw a Personal Welfare Lasting Power Of Attorney to give powers to your Attorneys to make welfare decisions on your behalf. Please contact Family Wills for further details.

The Disabled Discretionary Trust

A Disabled Discretionary Trust is often used by families who have a relative with a learning disability. These trusts are a way of putting in place financial arrangements to help support that disabled relative.

A Disabled Discretionary Trust can also provide a way of owning property. Sometimes families decide that in the long-term they would like to be able to set up arrangements that allow their relative to continue to live at home with the necessary support.

In summary, Disabled Discretionary Trusts are used:

• As a way of paying for the things the statutory services may not be able to give, for example a holiday, a new coat or even additional care
• As a means of owning, managing and maintaining a property
• As a way of arranging an inheritance
• So there is a way of managing money or other assets
• To avoid benefits and care funding being stopped

Income Support - and possibly other benefits such as Housing Benefit - stops being paid if a person has more than a certain amount of money. Benefits are withdrawn or reduced until savings fall below the relevant level for the benefit. If Social Services fund a residential care place or care package they may also begin to charge for the care service or stop funding it. A Disabled Discretionary Trust can avoid this.

Once assets are put into the Trust they belong to the Trust not the person intended to benefit. He or she may get gifts or even payments from the Trust but they cannot be said to have any assets themselves. Trusts hold and invest assets. This can include the family home. It may provide a means of managing and maintaining a property. This is particularly useful when the person lacks legal capacity i.e. sufficient understanding to enter into a contract. Trusts are normally set up as part of drawing up a Will.

Trustees operate trusts. These can be other family members, friends or professionals. The key points about a Disabled Discretionary Trust are:

• Trustees have discretion as to how the assets are used - the trustees are free to make all the decisions
• The person to benefit from the Trust must not have a right to the income or capital
• The intended beneficiary must not be the only person named in the Trust i.e. must not be the 'sole' beneficiary

Without these features the Disabled Discretionary Trust is not properly constituted and the person may be treated as though they own the house or have the money.

The IOU Discretionary Trust and Inheritance Tax Planning for unmarried couples

If the value of yours and your partner’s combined Estate (click here for ‘Your estate calculation’ page), after payment of your debts and any gifts to your partner or to charity, is worth more than £312,000 (from 6 April 2007), then Inheritance Tax will be payable at 40% on the value over this amount. If you would like to save up to £124,800 in Inheritance Tax once both of you have passed away then you may wish to include in both Wills an IOU DISCRETIONARY WILL TRUST.

Advance Directives or Living Wills, now replaced by Personal Welfare Lasting Power of Attorneys

Advance Directives or Living Wills can now be incorporated within the Personal Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney. This, unlike the previous Advance Directive which was an Expression of Wish, is a legally binding document. It enables you to direct your attorney in your decisions regarding your welfare should you become mentally incapacitated. This can, if required, include decisions regarding ‘life-sustaining’ treatment. Please ask Family wills for more details.

If you are interested in having an Advance Directive written for you, or require further information, please contact Family Wills.