by johnireland | Legal Spotlight
Estates used to be found in a filing cabinet. A great deal of the modern estate exists only as a login, protected by security designed to keep everyone out — including the Executor who is legally entitled to deal with it. Digital assets fall into four groups. Things...
by johnireland | Legal Spotlight
Councils can treat a gift or property transfer as “deprivation of assets” if they decide it was done deliberately to avoid care fees. There is no fixed time limit: a council must show you knew you would need care at the time, and that avoiding fees was a...
by johnireland | Legal Spotlight
A valid Will can still be challenged. Under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, spouses, civil partners, former spouses who haven’t remarried, children, stepchildren, dependants, and cohabitees of two years or more can claim the Will...
by johnireland | Legal Spotlight
Amended money laundering regulations changed the Trust Registration Service rules on 30 June 2026. Some non-UK trusts with UK links are now caught for the first time, while genuinely low-risk trusts get new easements. Because it cuts both ways, every trust needs...
by johnireland | Legal Spotlight
If you die without a will in England or Wales, a rigid set of rules decides who inherits — and the result often shocks families. Your spouse gets personal possessions plus the first £322,000 and half the remainder. Your children share the rest. If your estate includes...
by johnireland | Legal Spotlight
Being named as an executor is not an honour — it is a legal job. You are personally responsible for securing assets, valuing everything, paying debts and taxes, applying for probate (now £526), and distributing the estate exactly as the Will directs. The process takes...
