Category Archives: Legal Services

Lodge Brothers Legal Services will assist you with all probate enquiries

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The passing of a loved one can change your world in an instant. In one moment, everything is as it should be, and then within a heartbeat, it can all come crashing down. Sometimes we are prepared for the passing of our loved one in that we know it is coming but it does not take away the impact of that final moment when it actually happens. No matter how mentally prepared you may be, especially when a person has an illness for an extended period, there is always that sense of hope that things will be ok. When that call comes and hope dissolves, you need a support structure in place to help you navigate the unknown road ahead.

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Grieving loved ones, are advised to include, in their support system, a probate legal expert.

When it comes to the legalities associated with the end of life, Lodge Brothers Legal Services probate Sunbury, probate Ashford and probate Shepperton knows what is required for the executor of an estate and who is responsible for the probate process that authenticates a last will and testament of the deceased person.

Should the deceased have a will in place, Lodge Brothers Legal Services have the training and expertise required to facilitate the court-administered legal process of probate West Byfleet. Even more importantly, when an individual does not have a last will and testament, the process can become significantly more difficult. While families deal with the immense emotional grief which they must face when their loved one passes, Lodge Brothers Legal Services solicitors take care of the legal logistics.

There are 4 steps to the probate process. Firstly, the will, should there be one, has to be proven for authenticity. This is required to make sure that the Will is the most valid and latest version. In order for this to happen, a case is filed at the court. Once the court has validated the Will, the court will be in contact with the relevant beneficiaries and creditors. Before the beneficiaries can inherit assess indicated in the Will, creditors will need to be paid. Thus clearing all debts and outstanding taxes, so that the court can process the remaining assets as stipulated by the Will. At this stage there may be objections raised because of either complicated family dynamics or resulting from the process whereby all debts were settled. Should the debts out-weigh the assets, beneficiaries may not be advised, this may cause financial, and emotions stress for the family. Should the estate be unaffected by the debtors payments, an inventory of the properties and other assets such as jewellery, furniture and other possessions. The assessment covers everything from bank accounts affected by joint-tenancy with rights of survivorship, to distinguishing between probate or non-probate assets and properties.

At the end of the probate process, the assets are distributed according to the instructions found within the Will. The process of executing probate Walton and closing an estate can be a long and difficult one and your Lodge Brothers Legal Services attorney will be available for consultation until all details are legally finalised.

Probate services

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Lodge Brothers funeral services is always here to help. We know how unpredictable life can be on a daily basis and that things happen when you least expect it. This is why we make ourselves available at any time on any day, by phone or email. With 533,253 deaths in Wales and the UK in 2017. The office of National statistics shows that the provisional number of deaths registered in England and Wales in the week ending 31 August 2018 was 7,865. Yourmoney.com reports that “Around 60% of UK adults still haven’t made a will, according to new research from Unbiased.co.uk, leaving around 31 million people at risk of dying intestate. If you die without a will your estate will be distributed solely according to intestacy law, which may not reflect your wishes.”

Karen Barrett, CEO and founder of Unbiased, said “It’s clear that many people think they’re just not ‘rich enough’ to need a will. This ignores the fact that a will makes inheritance a far quicker process – do they really want to keep their loved ones waiting longer, when that money might be badly needed? It also doesn’t take into account the complexity of modern families, which intestacy law simply doesn’t address. Children from previous marriages could end up receiving nothing at all.”

At Lodge Brothers, we agree that this is the essential issue surrounding those who pass away without a will and encourage customers who we meet on a daily basis, not to find themselves in the same position as their loved ones who have gone before them. The financial consequences when a loved one dies affects the whole family and especially when there is a young family involved, this can have lasting and irreversible long-lasting effects on the family unit and extended family members. While you may not feel that you are rich enough to have a will, consider what the effects would be on your family should they have to love just one month or one week if you are a weekly paid individual.

At Lodge Brothers we have options to suit every pocket and take pride in extending a helping hand to our hundreds of clients in our local areas. You can find our offices in your local areas simply by visiting our website and searching by location. You will find that we have offices in all locations and we offer additional probate services. For example, should you be looking for probate in Chertsey, Ham or Guildford, simply search probate Chertsey, probate Ham or probate Guildford to find your local branch and contact telephone number or email address. Otherwise you can go to our branch locator search feature, capture your nearest branch, town name of post code, for ease of access to information concerning all services we offer.  If you’d like to know a little more about our services, we can send our ‘Guide to Arranging A Funeral’ to your home, or you can view and download a PDF. Click here to obtain.

Appoint Lodge Brothers Legal Services as the Executors of your Will

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Preparing a will for when you pass away is one of the most important things that you can do with your life, or so we have all heard… but is it really true that not having a will is going to cause problems for those you leave behind? Or is this just another fear-based threat designed to get us to jump into action and act by paying someone else to do our will for us, when in fact we could either do it ourselves or leave it all together? After all, there are rules in place which must be followed when we die, to ensure that the possessions we gather in life, are distributed amongst the family we leave behind. Why is the threat of not having a will shrouded in so many layers of alarming outcomes for those who are affected?

The fact is that there absolutely are rules which govern the passing of assets on to family once a person has deceased. These rules are fairly straight forward and not at all difficult to apply because as with everything based in the law, there is little to no room for personal interpretation nor much capacity for a person to manipulate the rules. And it does not necessarily require an attorney’s degree to construct a simple will which is easy to understand and follow in order to ensure that the assets are distributed as they were intended to be among the family members.

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However what if a person has a complicated or unknown scenario which only comes to light once the person has passed and they have not prepared a will? Or have prepared a Will which for some reason or another, such as it not being correctly witnessed, is invalid in the eyes of the law? The estate immediately considered as being intestate. Once a person’s possessions are intestate, the rules of intestacy apply. If that is the case then only married or civil partners, children and close relatives stand to benefit from the inheritance. The primary beneficiary is considered to be the husband, wife or civil partner (note: a civil partner differs from a “common law” partner).

Intestacy laws are there for substantially limiting and possibilities in life are infinite meaning that there are more scenarios under which a person may pass away, which cannot be covered by the rules governing wills. What is a parent has passed without a valid will and has 2 children, one estranged for decades and one who cared for that parent right throughout their life, up until they reached their death-bed, leaving that child cash-strapped due to the high costs of care and medicines, for the parent. By intestate law, both siblings would stand to inherit the estate equally and this is something, while difficult, that the parent would not necessarily want.

Wills can be drawn up quickly and inexpensively at any of our Wills Chertsey, Wills Guildford and Wills Ham offices of Lodge Brothers. Inquire today regarding your unique requirements for your will to ensure that your family members benefit properly from the distribution of your possessions and assets on your passing.

Lodge Brothers – Probate, Wills and Lasting Powers of Attorney

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Every person should have a will, only 30% of people in the UK have made a will, a will is where you state how you would like to distribute your property, name an executor, name guardians for children, distribute money and jewellery etc. Having a will also means that you, rather than the state, decide who gets your property when you die. Wills Walton on Thames are typewritten legal documents that are signed and witnessed.

Don’t leave it until it’s too late to get a will drawn up by a probate attorney such as Lodge Brothers legal services.

A legally valid Will, carefully prepared by a qualified expert Solicitor, will ensure that:

  • you provide for your loved ones in the way you wish;
  • you choose the Executors who will administer your estate;
  • you choose the Guardians for your minor children; and
  • you can take steps to reduce the Inheritance Tax payable.

You can also choose to appoint Lodge Brothers Legal Services as the Executors of your Will. We will ensure that your estate is dealt with promptly and efficiently so that your loved ones do not have the responsibility but do receive their inheritance as quickly as possible.

Fixed fee for a single Will starting from £325 +VAT (£390 inc. VAT).

Fixed fee for mirror Wills starting from £500 +VAT (£600 inc. VAT).

All our fees are fixed and agreed in advance.

Contact us for more information, a free no obligation quote or initial advice for Wills Weybridge.

Lodge Brothers Legal Services provide a free no obligation quote or initial advice

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Lodge Brothers Legal Services provide a free no obligation quote or initial advice.  With over 200 years experience their legal services are sought after. They offer many services one being Probate attorney and Will Writers. Below they explain why its so important to have a will and how they can assit.

Probate Attorney London

When a family member or loved one dies, dealing with estate administration is often the last thing on a person’s mind. We offer an efficient, professional and above all personal service to make your life easier at such a distressing time.

When a person dies leaving a valid Will, the appointed Executors need to apply for a Grant of Probate to administer the Deceased’s estate. If there is no Will, the laws of intestacy apply and the law sets out which family member is entitled to apply for a Grant of Letters of Administration and administer the estate.

The process of administering an estate is commonly known as probate and involves:

  • ascertaining the value of the Deceased’s assets and liabilities;
  • dealing with the Inland Revenue Inheritance Tax return;
  • preparing the probate papers;
  • applying to the Probate Registry for the Grant of Probate or Grant of Letters of Administration; and
  • collecting in the assets of the estate and settling the liabilities once the Grant is received.

Probate will be required to sell or transfer a house, sell or transfer shares and in most cases to close bank accounts. The assistance required by the Executors will depend on the finances of the Deceased, the terms of the Will, the family circumstances and how much work the Executors are willing or able to do.

OUR PROBATE SERVICES

Lodge Brothers Legal Services offer 3 levels of service to suit your requirements.

Fixed Fee from £250 (£300 inc. VAT):

  • Executors prepare all probate forms;
  • Executors make a personal application to the probate registry;
  • We will check the forms are completed correctly; and
  • Responsibility for the application remains with Executors.

Fixed Fee from £750 (£900 inc. VAT) plus disbursements:

  • Executors responsible for registering death with all asset holders;
  • Executors establish the assets and liabilities at date of death; and
  • We will complete the probate papers, Inheritance tax forms and apply for the Grant of Probate.

Fixed Fee from £1,500 (£1,800 inc. VAT ) plus disbursements: This is our most complete service which will relieve you of the heavy burden of dealing with the estate when your thoughts are elsewhere.

  • It ensures that probate is obtained quickly and efficiently.
  • We will register the death certificate with the asset holders;
  • We will ascertain the date of death assets and liabilities of the estate; and
  • We will complete all the probate papers, Inheritance Tax forms and apply for the Grant of Probate.