This month we will consider a recent Court of Appeal decision which should remind those practicing in Wills and Probate of the importance of following best practices when preparing wills for clients. 

The case, Hawes v Burgess [2013] EWCA Civ 74, involved a 2007 will which cut out the testatrix’s son, Peter, and left the estate equally to her two daughters, Libby and Julia. 

Consider the following background facts to the case:

1. The deceased, Daphne Burgess, died in 2009, aged 80, having suffered from failing health since 2006.

2. Under an earlier will, her estate (total less than £200,000) had been left equally to her son and two daughters.

The experience of seeing one’s parents split up, however amicably, can be difficult for a child to cope with.  But divorces are not always amicable.  The fact is that many split-ups are bitter and frequently involve protracted legal battles, including child custody cases.  In the bitter battle between warring parents, children often end up becoming the prisoners of war.  Parents often use children as weapons in their personal fights with each other, and according to legal experts specialising in family and divorce law, this behaviour is escalating. 

If you have studied ILSPA’s Legal Secretaries Diploma course, you will already know that a leasehold estate is one of the two ways under the Law of Property Act 1925 that you can own land in the UK.  Leasehold is a form of ownership that allows you a temporary right to hold land or property.  The length of this temporary right is often measured in decades, usually 99 or 125 years. What you have not bought when you obtain a leasehold title is the land a property stands on.  The land is owned by a freeholder or landlord, who will charge a ground rent.

The President of the Supreme Court, Lord Neuberger, recently expressed grave concerns about the imminent cuts in legal aid for civil cases.  These cuts are expected to save over £350 million after they come into effect this month.  But the statement by Lord Neuberger was closely followed by yet another announcement by Justice Secretary Chris Grayling, detailing further cuts in legal aid spending, this time for criminal cases. 

We all strive or wish for a positive work environment so that we can effectively do our jobs and enjoy our roles.  This can be accomplished by listening to others and making sure that each of your colleagues feel valued and respected for what he or she does or has to say. 

A career within the field of law is not all about Judges, Juries and dramatic cases fought in the courtroom.  In fact, a large proportion of legal work goes on behind the scenes in the office and is done by support staff such as Legal Secretaries.  Legal Secretaries ensure the smooth running of a legal department by providing essential administrative and managerial support.  Legal Secretaries are expected to carry out administrative duties such as producing legal documents and compiling official correspondence as well as more specific work such as conducting legal research.  Apart from office work, Legal Secretaries can also be required to attend court hearings or visit police stations from time to time. 

ILSPA’s Legal Secretaries Diploma unit relating to Wills, Administration and Procedure sets out why it is important to make a will, and the assessments for the course require Students to type a will.

It is possible to make a will without professional assistance; in fact, it is possible to pick up a draft will with basic instructions on how to complete the same from a high street stationery retailer.  Whilst this can produce a valid will, it is also very easy to make a mistake when writing the will or signing it, which can render it invalid or ambiguous. 

This is the final part of the series and I thought that I would end it with the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to me in my legal career.  Before I do this, however, I just want to mention two incidents that are highlighted in my memory.

For a period in my career, when I and my family had moved down from London to Devon, in the West Country, I ran my own conveyancing practice, which became very successful – so successful that I incorporated into it a high street estate agency so that I could provide the two services under one roof: negotiate the sale and/or purchase of clients’ properties and do the conveyancing for them, all for one composite fee.

There are no specific qualifications or experiences that can prepare a person to study law. For school-leavers, A-level studies in subjects that are similar to law such as economics or politics may be beneficial but are not essential. 

However, there are a number of skills which would be beneficial to individuals who are interested in studying law:

Strong Understanding and Use of Oral and Written Language

Language is the most important tool for anybody studying or practicing in law. Students and practitioners need to be able to communicate with clients and colleagues, and language is the basic communication tool by which to get a point across, as the law, by its very nature, needs to be accurate and clear.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child provides that anyone under the age of 18 is a child. It further provides that in regard to the age of criminal responsibility, countries should “consider whether a child can live up to the moral and psychological components of criminal responsibility.” In the UK, the minimum age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales was raised from 8 to 10 years old in 1963 and the legislation included a rebuttable presumption that a child aged between 10 and 14 years was incapable of committing an offence (doctrine of doli incapax). However, this presumption was abolished by s. 34 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, leaving the age of responsibility in England and Wales being the lowest in the EU.