BRAECROFT LEGAL
Protection Strategies
We use a range of trust structures to protect estates over multiple generations, for up to 125 years, which can be extended by future trustees.
Our trusts include Discretionary Will Trusts (DWT), Protective Property Trusts (PPT), Flexible Lifetime Interest Trusts (FLIT), Asset Protection Trusts (APT) and various other bespoke Trusts for specific family circumstances:
Right to Reside or Occupy Trust
Disabled / Vulnerable Person Trust
Business Property Relief Trust
Immediate Post-Death Interest Trust (IPDI)
Will Trusts
Discretionary Will Trusts (DWT), Protective Property Trusts (PPT), and Flexible Lifetime Interest Trusts (FLIT) are various types of Will Trusts that come into effect when the testator (the signatory to the Will) passes away. These types of trust remain dormant within the language of the Will and require some legal work for them to be created during probate, which is why we offer our Will Trusts alongside our Probate & Professional Executorship Service, so that our Will Trusts are made lawfully effective in an efficient manner, by our expert team.
CONTENTIOUS WILLS
We provide expert advice, Probate Services, and Court Representation for families struggling with disputes arising from a Contentious Will. This service is powered by our expert partners at IDR Law, and at Braecroft you benefit from one point of contact, through a process that can be very upsetting and disruptive. We will assess the matter you bring to us, and proceed if we believe there is a strong case to answer.
Property Trusts
An Asset Protection Trust (APT) is designed to protect your main residence, while you're still alive. Depending upon your circumstances, the structure of your family and their needs, an APT can be an excellent way to safeguard your largest asset for future generations, whilst maintaining control over your property during your lifetime, as trustee.
Placing your main residence into an APT also reduces the overall size of your estate for Inheritance Tax (IHT) purposes, which can help to maximum the tax-free shelter of your Nil Rate Band (NRB) allowance, for your cash equivalent savings and portfolio assets.
Probate
When you pass away, your loved ones will suddenly find themselves dealing with the inevitable paperwork and legal processes that are required to administer your estate. This can be an overwhelming task at a very vulnerable and emotionally difficult time.
You can assist and support your loved ones through this time by taking advantage of our seamless Probate Service, provided by IWC Probate Services, our expert team of probate specialists. They will assess the scope of your estate upon your death and provide your loved ones with a fixed cost quote, so that there are no surprises or hidden fees.
Professional Executorship
The executor is legally responsible for the distribution of your estate, according to your wishes, and legally and financially liable for any mistakes made during the probate process. For substantial or complex estates, which may reach around the globe, executorship can become a full-time job over many months - or in worst cases: years.
If unqualified members of your family have been named as executors, this can create mistakes, confusion, conflict, and sometimes even family breakdown and permanent estrangements, further frustrating the process of proving the Will. Delays and legal challenges can create expensive roadblocks to enacting Will Trusts, ultimately leading to the depletion of your estate, via legal fees and court costs.
For all of these reasons, we offer our clients access to our world-class Professional Executorship Service, which is provided by our industry leading partners at IWC Probate Services. Our expert team is dedicated to cutting through probate obstacles in a timely and efficient manner.
Lasting Powers of Attorney
A recent parental death, leaving one parent alone, or a diagnosis of early onset dementia, can trigger an urgent need for Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs) to legally empower loved ones to make important decisions, in regards to health and finance. Independent Financial Advisors (IFAs), banks, and accountants are obliged by law to advise you of the need for a Will supported by Lasting Powers of Attorney, once your estate reaches a size beyond which the lack of these protections would be highly unwise.
If your IFA, bank, or accountant have advised you to get LPAs in place, we offer a fast-tracked service that is double-checked by our colleagues at The Society of Will Writers (at no extra cost to you) to reduce mistakes, upon submission to the Office of Public Guardian (OPG). Mistakes can add months of delay to the submission process and become expensive if the OPG request an additional resubmission fee.
Your first home visit will include a thorough Capacity Assessment, creating a court worthy Capacity Assessment Report. Your subsequent document signing appointment is an excellent chance for us to meet your loved ones and discuss their concerns in person.
Tax Planning & Global Investing Insights
We now live in one of the most aggressive and invasive tax environments in the world and families, employers, farmers, private educators, parents, pensioners, and High Net Worth Individuals, are all reeling from the implications of one tax increase after another, often levied against funds that have been double and triple taxed already.
Left unprotected, estates will fall fowl of automatic taxes aimed at depleting family wealth over multiple generations, via the Triple Whammy, which is: 40% Inheritance Tax levied against successive generations, at least three times, until the family's entire legacy belongs to the government.
Working within the law, our strategies ensure that you can navigate the current landscape wisely and confidently. These extraordinary times require advanced knowledge and domain awareness of the current financial, legal, regulatory, geopolitical, domestic and international context, which is why we invest deeply in our own market intelligence.
Our trusted data sources and referrals include:
The Solari Report - YouTube Channel
Rule Investment Media - YouTube Channel
Charles Nenner Research Center
Miles Franklin - YouTube Channel
Commodity Culture - YouTube Channel
Mike Maloney - Hidden Secrets of Money
Mike Maloney - YouTube Channel
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