Tanya Beattie Case Studies - Wills & Probate

Please find latest case studies from Tanya Beattie in our Wills and Probate department.

Grant of Representation

Sometimes clients who no longer live in the UK still have assets in the UK which require a UK grant. We recently obtained a grant of representation for a client based in Thailand whose late husband died without a will.

As UK domiciled individuals are subject to inheritance tax on their worldwide assets but non-domiciled individuals are not, the application and inheritance tax account can be tricky to navigate especially for individuals who do not understand the English legal system.

Working together with our client, we were able to establish that whilst her husband was born in the UK, at the time of his death he had not lived in the UK for over 20 years and had no intention to return. We were therefore able to conclude he was not UK domiciled at the time of his death and as a result, we were able to successfully obtain an English grant to enable my client to collect in her late husband’s UK assets without his assets held in Thailand being subject to UK inheritance tax.

Discretionary Trust Will

We met the client when she was very ill to take instructions for her will. She told us one of her adult children lived with her but was unable to manage their finances independently. We explained to the client the different types of wills we could prepare and based on her family circumstances it was agreed that we would prepare a discretionary trust will. This arrangement would enable her adult child to continue to live in the family home after her death, but with the capital in the trust being protected for other beneficiaries. We prepared a letter of wishes that accompanied the will, setting out her intentions in relation to the trust and the distribution of her estate. This meant that instead of the adult child receiving inheritance immediately, the trustees could release money as and when the beneficiary needed them, preventing the beneficiary from squandering their inheritance.  

The client died a month later and since then Tanya has been helping the trustees deal with her estate and meet all their regulatory obligations as trustees. The trustees have been able to support the adult child who continues to live in the property and they are working together to see if the beneficiary might be able to live more independently.

When taking will instructions, we ask lots of questions about each client’s family as each family is different and one type of will may be suitable for one family but not for another. Getting to know our clients and listening to their desired outcomes, is a key aspect of our role.