Our Wills and Estates Department offer a wide range of legal services in relation to the preparation of Wills, Powers of Attorney and the Administration of Estates.

Making a Will

The importance of making a Will cannot be overstressed. We recognise that making a Will can be daunting. This is why each Will prepared by us is tailor-made for the client, taking into consideration his or her personal and financial circumstances and commitments – a Will can be as basic or complex as you wish.

We want our clients to feel comfortable when discussing such matters and this is why we are happy to visit clients in their own home allowing them to be in a familiar environment. We are happy to store our clients’ Wills free of charge.

Administration of Estates

When you lose someone close to you, it is often difficult to have to face dealing with that persons estate. It may involve having to obtain confirmation from the Court and if the deceased has died intestate (i.e without leaving a will) the situation may be even more complicated. It is important that an estate is administered with compassion as well as efficiency.Our team are on hand to offer advice and to help deal with the winding-up of the estate in a sympathetic, understanding and efficient manner at what is a difficult time in any person’s life.

Powers of Attorney

We can give specialist advice to clients in connection with Powers of Attorney and Court Protection matters. Granting a suitable Power of Attorney can mean that your family would avoid the difficulties and expense which can arise when our loved ones are no longer capable of dealing with their own affairs. If someone loses capacity and there is no Power of Attorney, that person's family (or the local authority in some instances) have to apply to court to be appointed the incapacitated person's Guardian. This is a costly procedure and can cost thousands to obtain. Compared to the cost of a Power of Attorney the choice should be a simple one. A Power of Attorney may also be useful for clients who are going to be out of the country for a period of time and wish to appoint someone to manage their affairs in their absence.

Guardianship and Intervention Orders

We can help if a member of your family is unable to grant a Power of Attorney and a Guardianship Order or an Intervention Order is required.A Guardianship Order is a Court Appointment which authorises a person to take action or make decisions on behalf of an adult with incapacity. The person appointed as a legal guardian will effectively have the same powers as an attorney to allow them to attend to the day to day affairs of the incapax and make decisions regarding that person's health and welfare, property and financial matters or a combination of these.

An Intervention Order is based on the principle of minimum necessary intervention. These orders are made by the Sheriff Court and relate to specific matters in the welfare or financial field that do not require the appointment of a guardian.

Please see our individual solicitors for their experiences and contact either one of them directly for an appointment to discuss any issue you have in child and family law.