All articles by Lesley King

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    Feature

    Billing time

    2023-08-30T10:14:00Z

    What happens when an executor allows for payment of bills which the beneficiaries will be responsible for? Lesley King looks at the law and case examples from this year

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    Family matters

    2023-03-02T09:13:00Z

    Professor Lesley King looks at recent cases involving the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 and identifies common threads for non-contentious practitioners

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    Feature

    A will to deceive

    2022-10-12T07:33:00Z

    Lesley King looks at the recent case of Re estate of McDonald [2022] EWHC 2405 (Ch), which involved removing an executor

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    Feature

    Read all about it

    2022-09-29T15:08:00Z

    Lesley King gave conference attendees a round-up of recent developments in the private client sector including the Trust Register, naming beneficiaries in wills and key cases relating to trusts

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    Feature

    Manual updates: HMRC Trust Registration Service Manual

    2022-08-04T09:52:00Z

    Lesley King comments on HMRCs latest updates to the Trust Registration Manual and highlights the areas particularly relevant for private client practitioners and where the new updates fall short. 

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    Feature

    Private client round-up: CFO interest rates, HMCTS letter and lost wills

    2022-06-10T14:15:00Z

    Lesley King considers the recent hot topic issues in the private sphere including the interest rates increase for the Courts Fund Office, submission of a IHT400 and a recent case on lost wills.

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    Feature

    The importance of distinguishing funds

    2022-04-06T08:37:00Z

    Lesley King discusses the recent case of Batt v Boswell: where confusion over trust and personal money led to a family dispute between two siblings following the death of their parents.

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    Feature

    Accelerated payment of CGT on residential property

    2022-02-01T16:26:00Z

    Lesley King summarises HMRC’s updated guidance on using a UK Property Account for payment of Capital Gains Tax, and what this means for trustees and personal representatives. 

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    Feature

    New excepted estates regulations

    2021-11-10T14:24:00Z

    Lesley King details excepted estate regulations that come into force in the new year, and the various tax implications that they have.

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    Staking a disclaim

    2021-09-22T16:17:00Z

    Lesley King analyses whether members of a discretionary class can disclaim their interest in settled property and looks at a recent case to see how this has worked in practice.

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    Feature

    Instruction manual

    2021-09-21T00:00:00Z

    At the conference, Lesley King spoke on wills and deeds of variations, the importance of documenting discussions with clients, and differences between variations and disclaimers

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    Back to Basics: Inheritance tax and partially exempt estates

    2021-08-19T00:00:00Z

    Lesley King explains how to get the calculations right for inheritance tax due on partially exempt estates

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    Feature

    Testamentary capacity and insane delusions

    2021-06-14T08:02:00Z

    Lesley King discusses how testamentary capacity is tested during contentious probate, and what is meant by ”insane delusions”.

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    Feature

    Stamp it out

    2021-05-18T00:00:00Z

    Lesley King unpicks the myriad of stamp duty land tax issues for trustees and beneficiaries

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    Feature

    BeWare!

    2021-04-21T09:32:00Z

    Lesley King comments on a case in which rectification of deeds of appointment was granted where there had been a mistake as to the legal, and not just fiscal, consequences of changes to a trust.

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    Feature

    Rectification of post-death variations: check and re-check

    2021-03-03T13:57:00Z

    Lesley King addresses a recent judgment involving a successful claim for a rectification of a deed of variation, which emphasises the importance of good communication between professionals.

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    Back to Basics: Liabilities in estate administration

    2021-02-16T00:00:00Z

    Lesley King looks at the rules governing payment of debts and liabilities during the administration of estates, including a number of example scenarios and relevant case law.

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    Feature

    For names’ sake! Naming charities in wills

    2021-01-07T13:25:00Z

    Inaccurate beneficiary names in wills can cause all sorts of problems. Lesley King reviews a recent example in Knipe v British Racing Drivers’ Motor Sport Charity and others [2020] EWHC 3295 (Ch).

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    Feature

    Accelerated payment of capital gains tax on residential land

    2020-11-04T14:49:00Z

    Since 6 April 2020, report and payment for capital gains tax on residential land must be made within 30 days of completion. Lesley King looks at the rules that trustees and personal representatives need to follow.

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    Trust issues: witnessing wills and changes to the Trusts Register

    2020-09-17T20:21:00Z

    Lesley King considers the recent changes to the Trusts Register and a legislation update, validating wills made via videoconference since 31 January 2020.