Archives for January 2020

If you go through a separation or divorce, it’s a naturally stressful time with so many pressing matters to consider – but business owners need to be mindful of their business at this time also or there can be consequences.

It may not be priority for you if your family breaks down, as you will understandably want to resolve serious issues such as whom the children live with and who keeps the house. However, it’s important to appreciate that your business would be included in the list of assets available for division between you and your spouse.

Family Law Act And Business

According to the Family Law Act, a business is part of the property collection that you and your spouse will divide between you upon separating or divorcing.

It’s not as simple as thinking it’s your business so you’ll keep it as part of the settlement. Depending on the value of the business, this can impact on the division of other assets to be shared.

Your Business As Part Of The Shared Properties

To be considered as part of the property portfolio that you and your spouse will divide between you, you need to have it valued.

The valuation can be done in one of two ways:

1. You and your spouse agree on its value
2. The business is professionally valued

The value of your business depends on a number of factors, including:

• Its structure
• Whether a buyer would want the business without your continued involvement in it
• The resale value of assets and equipment held by the business
• The value of the brand or goodwill

How We Can Help With Your Business And Separation  

If you’re struggling to agree on the value of your business, we’d advise having it professionally valued – this way, both you and your spouse will know its value and how best to divide this and the other properties between you both.

We’ve helped many individuals after their relationship has broken down, to divide properties in the fairest way. We can advise you on the worth of your business and help you to navigate your separation or divorce in the most straightforward and least stressful way.

To find out more about our family law services or to speak to one of our specialist solicitors at our offices in Chester about the value of your business and how best to incorporate it in the property pool to be divided between you and your spouse, contact us on 0800 988 3674 or email advice@bartletts.co.uk

Leaving a conditional gift in your Will can sometimes cause unintentional problems for loved ones in the future, which is why a gift with conditions attached needs careful consideration.

“You may have the best possible motives for leaving a conditional gift in your Will,” explains Nina Sperring, Solicitor and Director at Bartletts Solicitors.

“However, occasionally things can go awry with conditional gifts, when the beneficiaries fail to meet the conditions and as a result forfeit the gifts. The failure to fulfil conditions can be due to a number of reasons, including an unawareness of the conditions in the first place.

“Best intentions are not always enough when it comes to Wills and conditional gifts, and it’s important you regularly review and update your Will to avoid future issues arising for loved ones after you die.”

What Happens When The Conditions Of A Gift Aren’t Met?

The importance of having an up-to-date Will when conditional gifts are involved, is highlighted by a recent High Court case.

This High Court case resulted in two adult children missing out on their share of a farming partnership their father would otherwise have had due to a failure to meet the condition set by their grandfather in his Will that they didn’t even know about.

Background To The Case

Mr Hines was the owner of a family farm and left his interest in the farm to his wife and two of his children, John and Philip, split equally between the three of them, in his Will.

The gift to John and Philip was made with a condition, however. The condition was that within nine months of his death, each had to pay their brother Basil and sister Beryl £15,000. If this condition was not met, their inheritance would pass to Basil and Beryl.

Condition Not Met

Mr Hines’s death meant the time limit on the conditional gift was 4 October 1992.

John failed to meet the deadline and his interest passed straight to Basil and Beryl.

Philip, however, had died two years before his father, in 1990, so obviously could not meet the condition stipulated in his grandfather’s Will.

Philip’s children, Judith and Janet, brought the case to the High Court claiming they should have their father’s share of the farm. They argued they should either inherit free from the condition imposed on their father in the Will or be excused of their obligation due to their ignorance of the condition.

The judge ruled that they shouldn’t inherit, as the condition within Mr Hines’s Will was very clear and that the children of a beneficiary are bound by the same conditions as the beneficiary. Furthermore, a beneficiary’s ignorance of a condition or the ignorance of the beneficiary’s children does not make that condition impossible to fulfil.

Hence, Judith and Janet did not inherit and their share of the farming estate passed to Basil and Beryl.

Important Lesson

Had Mr Hines updated his Will after Philip’s death, he could have made his condition surrounding the gift for his two sons clearer and Philip’s children would likely have been able to meet the condition and inherit accordingly.

How We Can Help You With Conditional Gifts   

It is important to write down all your wishes for loved ones in your Will, including any conditional gifts you want to leave to beneficiaries. However, it is even more important to ensure your Will is carefully drafted by a professional solicitor and that you review and update it on a regular basis, especially where conditional gifts are concerned.

We’ll ensure all your wishes for your estate are detailed in your Will, including any gifts with conditions attached, and that your Will is as legally watertight and current as possible, to help avoid disputes down the line.

To speak to one of our specialist Wills and probate solicitors about making or updating your Will to incorporate a conditional gift, contact us on 0800 988 3674 or 01244 311 633 or email advice@bartletts.co.uk

The personal injury specialists at Bartletts Chester office recently helped a local cleaner to secure compensation for respiratory symptoms, which had been caused by living in unfit housing conditions for two years.

The 42-year old cleaner had been living in the below-standard property with damp and mould, that ruined many of her clothes and made her susceptible to chest infections, coughs and colds during the winter months.

As a result, she suffered from respiratory symptoms far more frequently than the average person experiences winter coughs and colds.

Luckily, she decided to use the personal injury services available from the Bartletts Chester office, and the team was able to use the photos of the damp house that the client had taken as evidence. She also had been in touch with her GP, despite self-medicating for her symptoms, and there was a record of her ailments as a result. Although there was no evidence she had complained to her landlord, the landlord had failed to comply with housing protocol and was at fault for not doing so.

The personal injury specialists at Bartletts Chester helped her to successfully claim compensation for her respiratory symptoms caused by unfit housing, as well as for damaged clothing and possessions.

In addition to the compensation, she was moved to new accommodation and no longer suffers the symptoms caused by her previous unfit home.

Our experienced property solicitors have handled all types of claims against landlords for disrepair and are here to help you if you’ve suffered an illness or injury, stress or loss, due to property disrepair and want to make a claim for compensation.

For advice and guidance on your housing situation or to speak to one of our property solicitors about making a housing disrepair claim, contact us on freephone 0800 988 3674 or Tel Chester: 01244 405 399 or email advice@bartletts.co.uk