Legal services

Powers of Attorney and Wills

As people live longer it is inevitable that some will lose mental capacity whilst others may lose capacity as a consequence of an accident/illness.  Accordingly, it is advisable to appoint an Attorney (i.e. a trusted family member or friend who you appoint to look after your affairs) before you lose capacity as to do so afterwards is not legally possible. Appointing a family member/friend as Attorney can make their task of caring for you a lot easier as failure to do so will result in having to raise a Court action to have a Guardian appointed which is stressful, costly and time consuming.  

Likewise, it is advisable to prepare Wills so that your wishes are clear.  Once again, having a Will can make life easier for those who have to deal with your affairs following your death. It is never too early to prepare a Will and such events as marriage, the birth of children, divorce and retiral are an opportune time to consider the matter.  We are happy to undertake home visits if required.

Executries

The death of a loved one is both a distressing and stressful experience.  We have a dedicated and experienced team to help you (the executor/s) deal with the legal implications relating to assets belonging to the deceased.  We can support you with our friendly and compassionate yet thorough approach during this difficult time.  

There is no such thing as a standard executry as every estate and situation is different.  We are able to deal with testate cases (i.e. where someone has died leaving a Will) and with intestate cases (i.e. where someone has died without a Will).  We can help shoulder the responsibility of dealing with everything from start to finish, ingathering the necessary information on your behalf, dealing with the Sheriff Court in relation to the Application for Confirmation and ingathering the estate assets thereafter right through to distribution of the estate, to allow you the time you need to grieve.  

Experience has shown us that the average time to wind up a straightforward estate is between six months (i.e. after expiry of the claim period) and a year.  We will of course keep you informed at all times and confirm the likely timescales from the outset.  

We are happy to undertake home visits if required.

Care costs/ Inheritance tax mitigation

We provide advice on care costs and also what steps can be taken with a view to minimising the effect of inheritance tax on your estate.  

Early attention to this matter is essential as failure to act timeously can limit significantly the steps which you may effectively take.

Commercial Property

We provide advice on all aspects of the purchase, sale or lease of commercial property whether the property comprises an office, factory, development site, care home, nursery, retail unit, hairdresser/beauty salon, restaurant, trade premises etc.