We’ll see you through
We’ll see you through
Wills, Probate & Lasting Powers of Attorney
Your affairs, your estate, your way
At Bridger’s Law, we take pride in providing compassionate and professional legal services in Wills, Probate, and Lasting Powers of Attorney.
Our team of dedicated solicitors takes the time to understand each client's unique needs, ensuring that their wishes are respected and their legal matters handled with care.
We strive to build lasting relationships based on trust, offering personalised support throughout every step.
A Will is a legal document that specifies how your assets, property, and possessions should be distributed after you die. It can also give information about the guardianship of any dependents, ensuring their future is as you would like it to be. Without a will, the law decides – and all too often, we see that this is not the wishes of the deceased and causes upset amongst families. This is especially true if the parties are not married.
A will can be written for anyone over 18 – ideally by a solicitor who knows how the law works. We advise everyone to have a will – and although they can be fairly sad to write, we really do believe that you should decide what happens when you die, not the law. We will meet you, discuss your needs and work together with your financial or tax advisor to ensure that your will reflects your wishes and is also the most tax efficient way of dealing with your assets.
No-one wants to gift inheritance tax to the government in their will!
Get quick answers to our most frequently asked will questions.
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No – you can do it yourself if your estate is straight-forward, but the general advice is to review it with a solicitor to spot anything you can amend to be more tax efficient, or clear.
Things change – a solicitor can reflect these changes in your Will, letting you know the consequences if applicable.
Someone who doesn’t has a Will is known to have died ‘intestate’. Their estate passes to their spouse – even if they are separated. If there is no spouse, it passes to the deceased’s children if there are any. If there are no children then the Law decides who inherits.
Potentially, yes – because a Will can be written in liaison with a financial advisor to ensure it is tax efficient.
It can include many things, but as a minimum, it needs to include:
Yes – if the following steps are followed:
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When someone you love or who was close to you dies, it can feel very distressing having to chase down their estate and deal with the ‘process’, often referred to as a ‘paper trail’.
We can take care of this for you, keeping you updated on where we are in gaining the Grant of Probate to finalise the estate efficiently.
We would usually expect an uncontested estate with no tax return to file to take around 38 weeks to finalise from your instructions, but it can vary, depending on the complexities of the estate and response time from other parties such as Probate Registry, HMRC, or a process such as a house sale.
We always update our clients when we know more specific timescales.
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The executor if there is a Will, the closest relative if there is no Will, or an appointed solicitor in either case.
You might think or know there is a Will but you can’t find it – you will need to prove you have searched for it. Without a will, the estate will be Intestate.
If a Will is later found, assets may be redistributed.
Yes – once a Grant of Probate is given and inheritance tax is paid.
No you don’t, but it’s likely that the deceased chose them. You can ask them to relinquish their role but they don’t have to.
Yes – it's when the debts are greater than the assets within the estate. It’s more complex and takes longer. Debts are paid in a very strict order.
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Contact us to see you carefully through probate
A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) allows your loved ones to take care of you and your finances if you become unable to do so yourself.
We recommend that everyone has an LPA in place - and not to wait until getting older to think about it.
Unfortunately, tragedy can strike at any age and having your affairs in order should the worst happen, is the best preparation, so that your affairs can be looked after by someone you have already given permission to.
LPAs transfer the decision about your care and finances to someone else – named specifically in the event of something tragic happening.
For example, if two people own a house together and one has an accident or illness leaving them in a coma, or unable to communicate, the remaining partner cannot sell it – because they don’t have the other’s permission.
It’s so important to have this document prepared, so speak to us about yours.
Contact us if you need a solicitor for Wills, Probate or Lasting Powers of Attorney.
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A special type of power of attorney which allows you to choose someone to act on your behalf and to make decisions for you if you lose mental capacity or earlier with your consent.
There are two types of LPA:
Anyone you trust – and you can have as many as you wish.
It’s the government body set up to protect people who lack mental capacity. They are responsible for maintaining the registers of EPAs and LPAs.
Yes – at any time, but only if you have mental capacity to do so.
Not at all – you carry on, in control with an LPA as you did before. They can also be used temporarily, if you lack mental capacity. When you regain it, control comes back to you.
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