Can we transfer our property to our children now and avoid facing care home fees in the future?

Clients are becoming increasingly mindful about ‘future planning’ their estates to best protect their assets for theirs and their loved one’s future. Many people consider transferring property or cash gifts to their children during their lifetime as this is perceived as a good way to avoid care home fees that may be forthcoming. There are many factors to consider before thinking about transferring assets out of your estate in this way and Amye Aris, Consultant Solicitor in our Wills and Probate team, discusses what these are.

Clients see the transfer of property to children as a way of taking that asset out of the calculation of their overall assets. Residential care is increasingly expensive (anything upwards of £2,000 per week in some areas). Anybody with capital or assets worth more than £23,250 must contribute

Do we need a Parenting Plan/Agreement?

Our Francine Bristo deals with this very pertinent question.

Parenting plans are really helpful unless there has been domestic abuse or concerns about your child’s safety.  A regular pattern of contact and a united front on arrangements makes children and you feel more secure.  You may have different ideas about what’s best for your children and this can make agreeing a parenting plan daunting, we at New Leaf are here to help support you through this.

A parenting agreement is a plan detailing how the day to day parenting of the children will be handled by the parties.  The plan involves both parents and in some cases, includes grandparents or a guardian.  Where children are old enough and it is appropriate, they too can be involved in the process enabling them to also have their voice heard.  The plan should reflect what is in the best interest

WHAT IS A GRANT OF PROBATE AND DO I NEED ONE TO MANAGE MY LOVED ONE’S AFFAIRS?

 Someone you know may have died and appointed you as an Executor in their Will. You may have heard or been told that you need to get on with obtaining a Grant of Probate, but are unsure what Probate is or how to go about getting it.

Applying for Probate gives you the legal right to deal with someone’s possessions, property and money (their Estate) when they die.

In England and Wales the type of Grant required depends on whether the person died with or without a Will.  A Grant of Probate is required if someone has died with a valid Will. A Grant of Letters of Administration is required if the person died but did not leave a valid Will. In both circumstances, however, the application process is largely the same and referred to as

Our Mark Perrett answers the question of ‘How is Coronavirus affecting Family Law’?

Coronavirus is affecting us all to some degree and its impact may be far reaching even as we move out of lockdown.

There are four Divorce Centres currently processing divorce cases in England and Wales. This is inevitably going to cause delays in getting petitions issued and then progressing them to their conclusion. It is sometimes the case that people just want to bring their marriages to an end and there are no other issues to resolve however it will probably take between 6 – 12 months in the current climate to do this.

If you have not made a will you should consider doing so to enable you to make provision for any assets that you do have (even if you do not consider them to be substantial) to ensure that your estate is dealt with as you wish

Our Mark Perrett answers the question many clients ask when they need some legal advice “Who should I approach?”

When you get to the stage where you feel you need guidance or advice regarding divorce, separation, children or finances who should you turn to?

Choosing a Solicitor is not dissimilar to employing a builder or any other expert. The advice and service you receive will help you to make decisions that will affect your life, your partner’s life and your children’s lives.

Look at websites and individual solicitor profiles to look at what they do and how that my differ from firm to firm. Is the website easy to use and navigate? Is it of interest and relevance to you and what you want to get advice about? Is it up to date?

Look at the Law Society website and search for Solicitors firms and then look at the experience levels of the solicitor

COVID-19: OUR REMOTE WILL WRITING AND LPA SERVICES CONTINUE

The Country is still in lockdown with no endpoint in sight, forcing us all to change and adapt to a different way of life. It also gives us some time and space to think about our own mortality and whether we have our affairs in order to make it easier on loved ones if anything were to happen. With all but key-workers working from home and everyone in self-isolation we have had lots of enquiries as to whether we can even take instructions for new Wills and Lasting Powers of Attorney during this time. We want to reassure you that we are still working remotely from home to provide you with our expert advice and assistance with your Wills and Lasting Power of Attorney as quickly and efficiently as possible.

We have policies in place to guarantee that we maintain our highest level

These are unprecedented times!  This phrase is used a lot but it certainly applies when it comes to contact arrangements. This pandemic would never have been in the minds of parents when reaching an agreement on contact with the children, nor would it have covered what would happen in the event of a pandemic. However, this is where we are and so it’s a learning curve for all of us.

If you have an amicable relationship with your co-parent then hopefully you can discuss and agree the new arrangements for your children if the usual arrangement isn’t working, particularly now that the children are now off school and one parent may be a key worker and working longer hours or one may be self isolating.

During this lockdown try to utilise the technology that is available, Zoom or Skype or video chats on social media to speak to the other parent and

Tips on how to co parent during the Coronavirus outbreak.

During such a stressful and unsettling time it is important that your children know there is some stability in their home life.  Their world has turned upside down if they are off school and they will need some structure at home and also reassurance that everything will be ok.

Be as present as possible when you are with your children, whether you are working through their school work or during play.  They may be feeling unsettled with their routine being disrupted so give them lots of reassurance and love and praise for help around the house or in their school work.

If your children are off school then use the time at home to get to know what is going on in their lives by talking to them more. If they are doing their school work, see how they approach their work and