Jane’s Blog

News and Views from Jane Cassell

I admit I felt emotional

Earlier this week, a chap popped into my office without appointment. He asked if he could speak with someone about his Dad who's died. He was taken to my meeting room, offered a cup of tea, and then I joined him. We went through the brief details of the estate, we...

Promote your adult children if appropriate

Clients who have children approaching eighteen, should consider getting on with Wills for now, with a view to promoting children as they reach adulthood. I have clients who went ahead with Wills last year, knowing that they'd want to put eldest son in charge as a...

Think of your estate as a pizza

Sometimes clients approach me and tell me that they want to give their home to this person, their Halifax account to that person, and other investments to another person. In pizza speak, this is a bit like saying your pepperoni to this person, your green peppers to...

There are no silly questions

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People who are planning to get their Wills done some day, often start their questions to me with "I know this is a silly question, but..." and actually, their questions are perfectly sensible and the answers are necessary for them to understand. I try to reassure...

Summer Wills

Is this the Summer that you finally get on with Wills? Is there a way you can make a day of it? A good number of my clients, plan their meeting with me, around a visit to St Albans Cathedral, and eating at a good restaurant. Others squeeze in a matinee film across the...

Feeling like a grumpy old woman

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I'm a pretty relaxed individual, but over the last year, there have been enough things going on in the world of Wills & Probate to make me rant. The issues which have made me particularly grumpy, are: Residential Nil Rate Band (RNRB) Proposed increase of Probate...

Different is not enough

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Back in the day, when I worked for a traditional law firm, I vividly remember my boss asking why people would come to us, as opposed to others, for legal services. He was the sort of chap who would make you feel that it's a trick question, and in a state of anxiety, I...

Educating Jane

Last week I had a meeting with a beautiful lady, who educated me, as we sat chatting for an hour or so after she'd signed her Will and Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs). She had told me that all women in her LPAs were to be referred to as "Ms" instead of Miss or Mrs,...