Statutory Sick Pay (SSP: What is it?)
Statutory Sick Pay is an employment related benefit. It is paid to employees should they be unable to go to work due to sickness, physical or mental, for a period of four days or more, as long as they earn above a lower earnings limit. It is payable for up to twenty eight weeks. [toc] […]
UK Private Tenants’ Rights
If you rent a home from a private landlord, it’s important that you are aware of your legal tenants rights. These rights are in place to ensure that you are protected and that landlords do not take advantage of tenants or treat them unfairly in any way. There are certain tenants rights you have if […]
A Guide to Inheritance Tax
Planning for the future can help to ensure that your loved ones are financially secure when you pass away and allow you to decide who receives what assets. A solicitor experienced in probate law can help you with this task and give you peace of mind for the future. One of the most important questions […]
How to Avoid Inheritance Tax
When looking at ‘how to avoid inheritance tax’, you would generally be looking at ways to reduce the size of your taxable estate while making full and effective use of IHT reliefs and exemptions. Inheritance tax becomes payable when the value of an individual’s estate, including gifts made by the deceased in the seven years […]
Inheritance Tax Rates
Understanding how inheritance tax works – in particular the rules relating to individual and married couple allowances, current thresholds and applicable inheritance tax rates – can be key to effective financial planning for the future. By planning ahead you may be able to minimise any inheritance tax liability after you die and, in turn, maximise […]
What is the Inheritance Tax Threshold?
UK inheritance tax, commonly known as IHT, is the tax payable on the transfer of assets from an estate to its beneficiaries. The current rate for IHT is 40%, which becomes payable if the estate is greater than the inheritance tax threshold once all exemptions and reliefs have been deducted. What is the inheritance tax […]
What is an Authorised Guarantee Agreement?
Authorised guarantee agreements (AGA’s) were introduced under the Landlord and Tenant (Covenants) Act 1995 in an attempt to conciliate the potential risk to the landlord if the new tenant proves unreliable and confusion over the outgoing tenant’s liability. Simply put, an AGA’s is a type of legally binding guarantee used to protect a landlord’s interests […]
Do I Have a Personal Injury Claim?
If you’ve been in an accident, or developed an illness, that wasn’t your fault or was the result of another person’s negligence, you may have a case for a personal injury claim to recover financial compensation. This compensation can be used to cover loss of earnings, medical treatment, rehabilitation, loss of earning potential and other […]
Holiday Sickness Claims- Are You Owed Compensation?
When you or your family fall ill abroad, it can not only spoil your holiday but be expensive, upsetting, and possibly cause long-term health problems too. Your tour operator and hotel have a duty of care to you as its customer when you are on holiday. So if any of your party become ill as […]
Do I Have a Case for Medical Negligence?
What is medical negligence? If you receive medical advice or treatment in the UK, you have the right to expect that this will be done to certain standards. In legal terms you are owed a ‘duty of care’ by the person who gave the advice or carried out the procedure. Their duty towards you is […]
N244 Form (Where to Find & How to Complete!)
The N244 form is an application notice, used to apply for a court order in the civil courts. The N244 form is used in relation to a number of different applications, normally in relation to monies owed to or by the applicant. It could be that this is an application for an initial court order […]
Establishing a Lasting Power of Attorney
Planning for the future can seem like a daunting task, but it’s vitally important to make sure that you have someone you trust to look after your affairs if you are unable to do so yourself. A lasting power of attorney can help with this—it allows you (the donor) to appoint one or more people […]
How to get Power of Attorney
What is Power of Attorney? A Power of Attorney is the grant of legal authority for another person (or persons) to make important decisions and manage your affairs on your behalf in circumstances where you are unable to do so yourself. When you apply for Power of Attorney you are known as the ‘donor’. Any […]
Boundary Dispute – What are Your Rights?
A boundary dispute is a disagreement between the owner(s) or occupier(s) of two or more neighbouring properties in respect of their rights and duties over their land. It is common for minor disagreements with neighbours relating to rights over land to escalate into full-scale boundary disputes. Boundary disputes can take many forms. Typically, disputes will […]
Making a Freedom of Information Act Request
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 sets out the rights and responsibilities of both the public authorities to make certain types of information publically available and those who wish to access the information by making a Freedom of Information Act request. Under the Act, individuals are permitted to request access to information about the activities […]
What is an Executor of a Will?
An executor of a will is appointed to handle an individual’s estate after they die. The ‘estate’ covers all of the deceased’s assets or belongings – money, property, possessions, and even debts. When a friend or family member asks you to be the executor (known as ‘executor nominate’ in Scotland) of their will, it will […]
Dying Intestate – What Does it Mean?
Dying intestate is when an individual dies without leaving a valid will in which they are then deemed to have died ‘intestate’. Their estate is therefore distributed in accordance with the rules of intestacy. Where the deceased has surviving family members, under the intestacy rules the process of claiming inheritance from the deceased’s estate can […]
How to Make a Will
Discussing what we would like to happen after we die is a conversation that most of us would rather defer. Yet making a will is essential if you want to ensure that your wishes are met following your death. If you die without making a will or leaving a valid will, the law will determine […]
Intestacy – A Guide
If a person has died without leaving a valid will, they have died intestate. Their property (the estate) will need to be shared out according to certain rules, called the intestacy rules. The Administration of Estates Act 1925, which sets out who can administer the estate and benefit from it if there is no valid […]
A Guide to Probate
Probate is the legal process of dealing with the estate of someone who has died. The term is used to describe both the grant of probate itself and the process involved in obtaining the grant. Probate is granted when a valid will has been left by the deceased. It’s your responsibility to obtain the grant […]