@forths solicitors  News Page .....................

March 2011

Alison Skene has completed her training as a Resolution Collaborative Lawyer and can how help her clients to resolve cases using that process, for more information please contact her or look at the information on our website.

June 2010

The Emergency Budget is iminent and it looks like Capital Gains Tax will be altered significantly.

Miss Jones and her Ex Partner, Mr Kernott, (perhaps more aptly Mr Care Not)

What the Court of Appeal said about the case- Lord Justice Wall;

 “This is a cautionary tale, which all unmarried couples who are contemplating the purchase of residential property as their home, and all solicitors who advise them, should study.....

The purchase of residential accommodation is perhaps the single most important financial transaction which any individual transacts in a lifetime. It is therefore of the utmost importance, that those who engage in these transactions,.... Cohabiting partners must ......  contemplate and address the unthinkable, namely that their relationship will break down and that they will fall out over what they do and do not own

First a Question

Q Would you think that 12 years after he left she would still have to sell her home and give him half of its value?  

A  No, well you will be surprised to hear that the majority of the Court of Appeal does not agree with you.....

In this case Mr Kernott claimed and received one half of the current value of the house he owned jointly with his former partner – Miss Jones, despite the fact that:

• they had separated 12 years before

• he had left her in the house to bring up their children with no maintenance from him

• She had to repair and maintain the property

• She had paid  the interest only mortgage and

• He had acquired during that time a new home for himself in which she was not entitled to any share.

What did she do wrong according to the court?

She should have decided what would happen if they separated with a Living Together Agreement and possibly a Declaration of Trust.

She should have sorted the situation out by agreement or court order when they separated and put down their agreement in written legal form.

She should have pursued child maintenance separately or at least included provision concerning this in the legal agreement between them.

Crudely she should have married him and then the court would have had considerably more power to work out a fair result between them. Although legal reform to give long term cohabitants legal rights is still ongoing there is no new law in sight and there may never be any new law offering protection.

The morale of the story is

• Consider a Living Together Agreement and or a Declaration of Trust

• Don’t delay in taking legal advice after separation

• Take legal action if necessary if you cannot reach agreement

News: 25th March 2010  Good News for First Time Buyers

Stamp Duty Land Tax goes for First Time Buyers up to £250,000.

The Exemption affects all purchases by first time buyers until 24th March 2010.

What the Chancellor of the Exchequer gives he can take away and this may be affected by the result of the much anticipated election. This was a Conservative Policy so it may well survive the election regardless of its outcome.

News: February 2010 -Forths goes Limited

Forths Solicitors has become a limited company with Hugh Jenyns and Roman Ivanec as Directors. The company will trade as

@forths solicitors.

The Company's registered office is 21 High Street Yarm TS15 9BW. The Company  is registered in England and Wales and its Registration Number is 7118117 .

All of our contact details will remain as before.  

Roman Ivanec says " becoming a limited company will open the way to expanding the range of services that we can offer to our clients" 

news: august 2009 - extended  court powers 

New powers to protect victims of domestic violence have been announced.

 As from 30th September 2009 victims of harassment will have greater protection following an extension of current powers that will allow courts to grant restraining orders following conviction for any offence, and even if someone has been acquitted of an offence if it is considered necessary, by the court, to protect a named person from harassment in the future.

news: april 2009-  family@pensions

There has been a recent change in the law relating to pension funds financed by the state organisations e.g.   Armed Forces, Police, Fire Service.  As from 6th April 2009 the change means that these schemes can now legally pay out pensions to spouses of pension holders who have had a pension sharing order made in their favour on divorce as early as age 55 , whereas previously this was 60 or 65.

The news is not all good as this gives the schemes the power to make early payments. it does not impose an obligation on them to make the payment early.

Currently both the FireFighters Pension Scheme and the Police Pension scheme have said they intend to adopt the early payments, but there is indication as to when this will be or any guarantee that budgetry restrictions will not postpone or perhasp cancell their being implemented.

Why the Change?

It plugs the income gap

What is the income gap?

Quite simply currently once a pension sharing order is made  in relation to a  publically funded pension that is already being paid the reduced pension from which a percentage is taken to be put in a new scheme for the ex spouse reduces straightway by the percentage taken.

The rules say that the ex spouse's pension cannot be paid normally until 65, there may be many years when they receive nothing, but the other sposue cannot pay them maintenance as their own pension income has been reduced immediately.  

Not a problem usually when the spouses are close in age and are nearing retirement, but a real problem for cases where early retirement is normal e.g. Armed Forces , Police Service.    

Watch the website for more news on this....................... 

wills & estates

What is an intestacy?

It is when you die either without a will at all , or with a will but one that does not adequately gift all of your property this is known as a partial intestacy.

Because you have not dealt with your property by will the state decides who received what from your estate i.e. all of your property at your death. Complicated rules called the Intestacy Rules apply. Blood relatives only benefif automatically under an intestacy. 

Family Provision (Intestate Succession) Order 2009 as from 1st February 2009

SI 2009 No. 135

The estate of a person dying intestate is charged with a fixed sum (the statutory legacy) in favour of the person’s surviving spouse or civil partner. This Order increases the statutory legacy from £125,000 to £250,000 where the intestate is survived by issue ( children or grandchildren), and from £200,000 to £450,000 where there is no surviving issue but the intestate is survived by certain close relatives. ( brothers and sisters and or parents)for more information on the Intestacy Rules contact Clive Harvard  

The Firm has moved with the times and has adopted the trading name of forths solicitors . This coincides with the expansion of the scope of the legal services we are able to offer you and reflects our modern and friendly approach .

In addition to our conveyancing, commercial, licensing and wills and probate departments; all of whom have pages on this site, which you can access by using the navigation list to the left of the site,or by clicking the links above.

We now have a Family Law Department - family@forths, and a new specialist solicitor to run it: Alison Skene (pictured above)

Alison is an Accredited Specialist with Resolution (First for Family Law) in Advanced Financial Provision and Private Children Law, and has over 17 years relevant experience in family law. She is not your average solicitor and offers a caring and sympathetic service.

To meet Alison Skene and learn more about the family law service  we and learn the answer to the Question What exactly  is Family Law?  please visit the Family Law page.

Alison regularly writes articles that we publish on the website on interesting and important court cases particularly those in the media and on changes in the law.

Attachments:

Summer newletter

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