Services

01. Tax & Estate Planning

INHERITANCE TAX PLANNING AND WILLS

Our tax and estate planning lawyers are experts in family wealth planning and will work closely with you to advise on the options available to you to mitigate your inheritance tax liability, both during your lifetime and after you have died, We take time to get to know you and your family, and tailor our advice to your long-term objectives, whether from a succession perspective, preventing family conflict or considering steps to protect your assets, whether they are based in Ghana or offshore.

We recognise that each family is different and this is reflected in our bespoke and pragmatic approach to our advice.

We will work closely with your other professional advisors, such as your accountant or independent financial advisor (IFA), to ensure that our advice fits in with your family’s aims and to maximise the options available to you. Making a will is the cornerstone of estate planning and provides an opportunity to ensure that your assets are distributed in line with your wishes on your death, whilst achieving this aim in a tax-efficient manner.
All of our wills are bespoke and range from those that are fairly straightforward to those that deal with extremely detailed and complex requirements. Many include trusts to ensure that they are as tax efficient as possible.
Our team regularly deal with large and complex asset bases, including those based in foreign jurisdictions.

PROBATE AND ESTATE ADMINISTRATION

We understand that when someone close to you dies it is a deeply emotional and stressful time. Whether you are an Executor or a family member, we can provide full support in considering what steps should be taken next. We will guide you through the process of explaining how assets will pass, either under the Will or in accordance with the intestacy rules (if they had died without a Will), and we aim to make what is often a complex process as straightforward as possible. Our team are happy to undertake home visits to take the pressure off you.

We use our many years of experience to remove as much of the burden from you as possible. This may include:

Handling the payment of inheritance tax
Dealing with queries HMRC may raise
Speaking to any relevant financial institutions
Obtaining details and valuations of the assets and liabilities of the estate
Determining the size of the estate for Probate and Inheritance Tax purposes
Obtaining a Grant of Probate/Grant of Representation to access assets
Distributing the assets to the beneficiaries

We specialise in dealing with large, complex estates and probate cases involving:

Business assets
Agricultural property
Large-scale investments
Foreign assets
Trusts
Disputed estates
Advising on any exemptions and reliefs that may apply and how to mitigate any income or capital gains tax liabilities that may arise

We also specialise in post-death planning for you, your family and your family business, which may include claiming any transferable inheritance tax allowances and the use of Deeds of Variation.