New Year, New Team

New Year, New Team

Jan, 2021 | Company News

New Year, New Team

During this year at Elaine Parkes Solicitors, there have been a few staff developments and due to our expanding client base, these will continue into 2021

We say a fond farewell to Elaine Parkes herself who is retiring from the company to concentrate on her role as Deputy District Judge and her gold handicap. Happy Retirement, Elaine!

We also be saying farewell to Martin Chambers, whose locum contract has to come to completion. He has been assisting with Divorce and Financial matters for both Elaine Parkes Solicitors Ltd and The Law Firm Group Ltd and his calm demeanour and wealth of experience has been a valuable asset to both firms. 

We welcome Bruce Jackson, who will be leading our Divorce, Finances and Private Child Arrangements Team from January 2021. Bruce has many years’ experience dealing with family and Children Law matters. Bruce’s advocacy experience is excellent and is one of his greatest strengths when dealing with family matters.

We also welcome Charlotte Hustwayte, who will be joining Bruce in our Divorce, Finances and Private Child Arrangements Team from January 2021. Charlotte has experience with all family matters, including cases which involve domestic abuse and require protective orders, such as Non Molestation Orders and Occupation Orders, disputes which affect children, and disputes arising from the breakdown of a relationship, whether married or not.

As many of you will already be aware, in October 2020 we welcomed Sussie Ross who is currently leading our Care and Legally Aided Matter Team. Sussie’s Team consists of Mary Enang and Miriam Yousaf who, between them, have a wealth of experience in this sector, including accreditations from the Family Law Panel and Children Law Panel.

Due to our continued growth, we will be recruiting more staff in the New Year to enable us to continue to provide our clients with our SQM and Lexcel accredited services. 

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Top 6 Things to Consider When Writing a Will

Top 6 Things to Consider When Writing a Will

Feb, 2020 | Family Law

TOP 6 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN WRITING A WILL

Preparing to write your will can take a considerable amount of time and planning. You’ll need to think long term and carefully consider all aspects of your life. Elaine Parkes wants to help you ensure that your will is an accurate reflection of how to deal with your most treasured assets and record your requests.

We’ve created a guide of our top 6 important things to think about when preparing your will.

  1. Guardianship of children – If you have children under 16

Some people often write their will after the birth of their first child. When writing your will, you can nominate another person to care for your child until they are adults if anything happens to you and your partner.

It’s important to consider a range of points when choosing your guardian such as:

  • Similarities in lifestyle, values and religion
  • Who does your child have a strong bond with
  • Location of where the potential guardian lives- will it be suitable
  • Who will be able to take on the role physically, financially and emotionally

2.  Assets 

When making a will, it’s important that you make a list of your assets and their values. Once you have compiled your list of assets you’ll be able to identify who you want to give what to.

It’s essential that you note whether the assets you own are owned independently or with someone else for example, a spouse. A jointly owned property will automatically go to the surviving owner.

Cherished items are often overlooked as assets, although they don’t have a high monetary value they do have emotional/personal value. Think about your cherished items as you can pass them along to children or grandchildren as a family heirloom.

3.  Appointing an executor

The executor of the will are the people responsible to carry out your final wishes as you outline in your will. Being an executor can be a complicated task, so when choosing your executor make sure you consider someone who has the time and will be the ablest to accomplish the task.

4.  Naming beneficiaries

Beneficiaries are the persons who will benefit from your will. The most common beneficiaries are usually your spouse, children, extended family and possibly favourite charities. If you’re leaving an estate to more than one beneficiary, make sure you explain how it’s to be shared in order to avoid complication i.e. – include sums or percentages.

5. Complex circumstances

There can be many complex circumstances that you need to consider when writing your will and you should take note of them. Some circumstances that you may want to consider are:

  • Excluding someone who would normally expect to benefit from your will
  • Previous marriage/divorce or other family complexities
  • Providing for a beneficiary with special needs
  • Being a company director

Make sure you explain any specific circumstances to your will writer for example, why you want to exclude someone or why you have left someone less than they may expect. This can be kept on file and can be used should anyone claim against your estate.

6.  Getting expert advice

As you can see writing a will isn’t straightforward so it’s best to get advice from solicitors. Ideally, it’s best to speak to solicitors who specialise in wills and probate as they can write the document and ensure that everything is in order for you.

 

Do you need help or advice when it comes to will writing?

If you have any questions about preparing for your will appointment or writing your will, we’re here to help. Contact Elaine Parkes Solicitors on 01424 883183 

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Dealing with Emotions Divorce

Dealing with Emotions Divorce

Jan, 2020 | Divorce, Dissolution, Separation

DEALING WITH EMOTIONS IN DIVORCE

We understand that going through divorce is known to be one of the most stressful experiences that can happen in your life. Not only are you separating from your partner, your living arrangements are going to change and there is also the consideration of finances and arrangements for children.

Our experienced family solicitors at Elaine Parkes understand that facing divorce is a very stressful time and have created some steps in order to reduce the stress.

1) Find a Good Family Solicitor

Finding a good family solicitor as soon as possible will be particularly helpful. They can go through with you at an early stage what your options are which can reduce any uncertainty you have. Our experienced family lawyers approach each case with a supportive, understanding ear, as well as having the breadth of expertise to deliver sound, effective advice on all issues that may come into play, including Property and Business Law.

 2) Reaching a settlement

Whilst ideally you’ll want to reach a settlement quickly, it should also be thorough enough so that every fine detail has been covered. Following your solicitor’s advice is important as they will be able to make a settlement that is more likely to be approved by the court. In the long term this will result in the divorce process ending a lot faster.

3) Consider mediation

As the divorce process goes on, you may find it hard to compromise on some of the more important matters such as finance, property and children. If complications do occur, it will help to get a mediator, they will help you and your partner work towards a solution that works for both of you without the need for the court to make decisions.

4) Make child arrangements a priority

Aim to resolve matters that involve children relatively quickly. If your child/children know where they stand and what is going to happen, it will help reduce their stress. If everyone agrees and has a clear understanding of what the arrangements will be, it will make the situation easier and help to reduce a drawn out court conflict.

5) Focus on long-term fairness

You should reach mutual agreement between both parties with the guidance of a family solicitor as this will be much easier to deal with in the long term. This way makes it more straightforward, allowing both parties to move on peacefully, which will reduce long-term stress.

 

Do you need help or advice when it comes to divorce?

If you have any questions about divorce or looking for a family solicitor, we’re here to help. Contact Elaine Parkes on 01424 883183

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Will Making – When is Pressure “Undue Influence”?

Will Making – When is Pressure “Undue Influence”?

Jan, 2020 | Children Matters & Care Proceedings

WILL MAKING – WHEN IS PRESSURE “UNDUE INFLUENCE”?

In our specialist Contentious Trusts and Probate team, we are often approached by clients who have concerns that a recently deceased loved one may have been pressurised into making their Will. Is this grounds for challenging the validity of a Will? In short, perhaps – but it is not straightforward.

A legal challenge as to the validity of a Will on the basis of excessive pressure by a third party is known as “undue influence”. One of the most succinct definitions of what constitutes “undue influence” came in Hall v Hall, a case from the 1860s. In this case the type of pressure that would be classed as unlawful was described as of such “character if so exerted as to overpower the volition without convincing the judgment of the testator (the person making the Will)… though no force has been either used or threatened”.

However, some pressure exerted on a testator is not unlawful. In the Will making process it is not uncommon for testators to consult with others (for example, their children) and for these third parties to try to influence the testator into making a Will in their favour. The key is that the contents of the Will must still reflect the testator’s own freely made decisions. For pressure to be unlawful, we are looking for examples of coercion where the testator is acting contrary to their own free will and choice. However, having said that, note that a frail testator giving into pressure for a “quiet life” could constitute undue influence. Circumstances are key and different levels of pressure will overpower different individuals.

Practically speaking, how common are these claims? Whilst we receive a lot of enquiries about undue influence, one of the first points we like to make is that historically successful claims challenging the validity of a Will on the basis of undue influence are very rare. Whilst the legal concepts are relatively straightforward, the real issue is evidence. The person with the best knowledge of the events is unfortunately dead (i.e. the testator).

Whilst we would advise clients to approach undue influence claims with extreme caution, this should not put people off from carrying out investigations if they have suspicions of foul play. There are also linked claims which can be run as an alternative to undue influence and as such, it is always worth seeking a specialist legal opinion if you have concerns regarding a Will.

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