Dealing with the legal aspects of the death of a loved one can be emotionally taxing. Add to this the complexities that come with being the person(s) left to sort through the deceased person’s assets, and it makes for a stressful time.

Often unsure of where to start, read on to learn about probate, the process and when you need to seek legal advice.

Celebrating 30 years in business in 2017, Smith Partnership, one of the largest firms of solicitors in the East Midlands, is often surprised by the recurring issues faced by people when going through a stressful divorce process.

Ruth Jones, Partner from the Family Law team at Smith Partnership spoke about the issues she had recently read about happening in Australia, which are commonplace in the UK as well:

The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 allows a child to claim maintenance (only) from a deceased parent’s estate, where the child thinks that reasonable financial provision has not been made for them. It is commonly thought, and accepted, that the Act was designed with minor children in mind, and of course maintenance payments for minor children are commonplace.

1. Don’t panic. There are no time limits for you to deal with things, except you have five days in which to register the death at with the Registrar of Births, Deaths & Marriages.
2. Contact us.

Smith Partnership, one of largest firms of solicitors in the East Midlands, is encouraged by the range of new mortgage schemes now on offer to both first time buyers and older borrowers – offering a breath of fresh air since the economic downturn in 2007 and subsequent tightened lending.

Smith Partnership Solicitors, celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, is offering advice to the general public as the new tax year in April 2017 brings with it the first major change to the Inheritance Tax law since 2007.

The BBC’s Radio 5 Live survey, of 2,031 British adults, found that 37% of all those asked had experienced sexual harassment at work or a place of study.

There is a whole host of reasons and circumstances that can leave people’s finances in disarray. Even with the best of intentions, there are times when situations occur and keeping up with repayments is not possible.

If you find yourself facing such a situation, it can be easy to want to hide and ignore demands for payment. However, hiding from your creditors will not make the situation go away and could even mean you incur extra charges and cause damage to your credit score; affecting future financing options.

On 20 October 2017, the Government announced its Employment Tribunal Fee Refund Scheme, following the recent judgment issued by the Supreme Court, which declared tribunal fees unlawful.  

Smith Partnership, one of the largest firms of solicitors in the East Midlands, offers its view on the impact of Brexit on UK regulatory law, following the dramatic results of the EU referendum on 23rd June 2016. 

Kevin McGrath, Partner at Smith Partnership commented: “For many who voted leave in the EU referendum, one of the primary motivations was to restore the sovereignty of the United Kingdom parliament, and to wrestle away from Europe its apparent control over our law making.