The Court of Protection will be increasing the application fees for a deputyship, statutory will or gifting application from £365 to £371 as of 30 September 2021. If you have an application in process make sure you submit it before 29 September 2021 to obtain the lower fee!!

If you are a trustee of a trust you will need to make sure you are familiar with the new rules in relation to the registration of trusts with the HMRC. There have been changes in recent years to ensure that HMRC is aware of all trusts within the UK. Certain trusts already need to be uploaded to the UK trust register. This has not included trusts which are non-taxable, until now. Until recently all trusts which did not generate income or capital gains, and did not require the completion of an tax return did not need to be included on the register. Now, trusts which do not generate income or capital gains and do not need a tax return must be registered on the trust register by 1 September 2022, unless they are specifically excluded. If a trust becomes registerable after 1 September 2022 there will be a 90 day window in which trustees must register the trust on within the registration system. The same window will apply if an amendment must be made to the trust details. This new change is going to make the ongoing work required by a trustee more complex and add an additional layer of compliance responsibility that must be observed to avoid falling foul of HMRC sanctions. If you are a trustee and do not know how these changes will affect any trust you have responsibility for and do not know where to begin please give us a call for more help and support.

Before you say yes to acting as an attorney do you really know what is involved and what this could mean for you? Saying yes and signing the forms is the easy bit! It may not be as simple as you think. The duties of an attorney appointed under a lasting power of attorney are set out in the Mental Capacity Act 2005. They state that an attorney must:- assume that a donor, the person making the lasting power of attorney, has capacity to make their own decisions unless it is established the donor cannot do so not treat the donor as unable to make decisions unless all practicable steps to help the donor have been taken without success not to treat the donor as unable to make decisions because the donor makes an unwise decision make decisions and act in the donor's best interests when the donor is unable to make a decision consider whether the decision which needs to be made can be made in way which is less restrictive of the donor's rights and freedoms whilst achieving the same purpose These five rules and the governing principles which should underpin any decision or action you take as an attorney. It is extremely important that you get to know the person you are looking after in respect of their assets and liabilities, their wealth and their thoughts and feelings in relation to their personal welfare. You may be asked to act as a financial attorney or in relation to health and welfare decisions. If you do not know what assets and liabilities the donor has or what they want to happen to them you will not be able to make an informed decision. It is key that you consider the donor's past and present wishes, feelings, religious beliefs, cultural, moral or political views when exercising your judgment. You should make sure you are aware of anyone close to the donor that you may need to speak to when considering a decision which needs to be made. You may also need to argue your reasoning behind a decision if it is challenged or there is a disagreement. You will owe a duty of care to the donor in respect of the decision you make and must ensure that you are not in a position of conflict or find yourself in a situation which could be construed as taking advantage of the donor. Think carefully about any situation which could impact on you acting in the best interest of the donor before signing the lasting power of attorney. If you think this may arise it might be better for you to decline the appointment. You will not be able to delegate any functions you must undertake. This means that you have to make all decisions and cannot ask anyone to make decisions or take actions on your behalf. There are some purely administrative tasks which may be limited exceptions to this rule. Your role as attorney will begin once the lasting power of attorney has been registered with the Office of the Public Guardian. However, this may not mean you have to act. Whilst a donor has capacity to make decisions in relation to their financial affairs they can continue to do so, although they may ask you to help with certain things. You will not be able to act as a health and welfare attorney until the donor has lost capacity. You will therefore need to have an awareness of how to assess capacity and how capacity varies for different decisions which need to be made. All of this is even before you start to act. When you do act there are certain things that you cannot do. You cannot ignore guidance or instructions included in the lasting power which appoints you. You cannot ignore the thoughts and feelings of the donor which have been communicated to you. You cannot mix assets that belong to you and the donor. You cannot make gifts, deal freely with investments, make a will for the donor or act in their shoes as a trustee. You are not able to consent to marriage or d ivorce, exercise the right to vote, consent or refuse treatment for a mental disorder or be a party to the restriction of liberty of the donor. Apart from this it should be all plain sailing! Or should it? Acting as an attorney can become a full time job. Some of the issues which come up during a person's life are very complex and may take considerable time and energy to resolve. Even the lodging of the lasting power of attorney with the asset and liability holders can take an enormous amount of time to complete. You should think about acting as an attorney as a job, either part time or full time. It can put undue pressure on your family relationships and your professional work life so make sure you find out exactly what is involved before you say yes. If you do choose to act then remember Argo is always here to help in your role as attorney or to provide advice and support as you go. You only have to ring!

This is often the situation we are faced with when we walk into a client meeting. An exhausted 40 or 50 something who is pulled and pushed between their parents and children. These guys are also known as the sandwich generation and often feel as if they don't know where to turn. As we age, we find the burdens of family life increasing and our ability to cope decreasing. There are only a certain number of hours in the day and in addition to children and parents people have to work, maintain a house and a life. So, what are we to do to avoid exhaustion and spreading ourselves too thin? Many of us have an ageing parent or grandparent who refuses to accept help from anyone other than us. They will not have "help at home" or do anything that takes away their independence. Stubbornness is sometimes not helpful, even if it is what keeps them going! In these circumstances it is about talking and gently introducing change. Any change that is made needs to be slowly and must not deviate too far from what that parent or grandparent is used to. Find someone to help who shares common interests, if you are trying to employ the services of care at home. Take the carer with you when you visit so they can have a cup of tea and a chat whilst you are busy reducing list of things to do. Overtime a relationship will build and then you will wonder how you ever managed without them. Try to get a regime of support in place to ensure that you can rely on those people who make up part of the "team" who are looking after mum or dad, that way you will know who is where an when and who is doing what and when. It will also help your parents to feel more secure in what is going on. It is important to share the burden with other family members. Do not take everything on your shoulders. Split roles if you are able to between you and your siblings. Can one of you deal with daily visits to the house, another medical appointments and a third financial matters? Are there grandchildren who are of an age that would happily spend time with their grandparent to give you a break. It is surprising how much the younger generation can cheer and revitalise and older relation. Seek professional support and assistance as it can make your life a lot easier. Are your parents, grandparents on the correct benefits? Are their finances working as well as they can for the? Do they have lasting powers of attorney for support and assistance with their financial affairs and health and welfare? Use the services of the local authority adult social care team to assess their needs for support and assistance at home. Make use of kit and equipment that is out there as this can help with tracking movements, watching out for falls and can provide an emergency call facility in the event of an accident. It is not just one thing that will help to ease the worry of ageing parents. It is a combination of tools that you have in your armoury that work together and compliment each other which result in success. It is also important that you get the support you need not just your parent or grandparent. You are the forgotten person in this situation. The carer, the child, the parent, the organiser, the authoritarian, the source of anger and frustration. .You are also entitled to help and support to ensure that you do not go under. There are far too many things to put in writing that could help and support. What we can offer is an ear to listen and advise. Our life support team at Argo are experienced in supporting families who find themselves in this exact situation; overworked, underpaid and at the end of their tether. We are always able to help whether it is claiming benefits, arranging care or managing financial matters. We are only ever a telephone call away.

Depriving someone of their liberty by placing them in a care home is something that must be done carefully and with the correct authorisation. Kent County Council have recently been reprimanded by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman for placing a lady in a care home against her wishes. Mr C decided to complain to the Ombudsman in respect of the decision by Kent County Council to place his late partner in a care home. He complained that there had been inadequate arrangements for a best interests meeting, a lack of consultation before placing his partner in a care home, the appointment of an Independent Mental Capacity Advocate, authorisation to deprive his partner of her liberty and failure to apply to the Court of Protection for approval. Ms D was admitted to hospital following a stroke in 2019. Prior to her stay in hospital Ms D had been living with Mr C and had been cared for by him as she had suffered brain damage. No help or support was provided to them from the local authority. When it was agreed Ms D should be discharged from hospital it was recommended that she was moved to a rehabilitation unit in a community hospital. The rehabilitation unit made the referral for a social care assessment to Kent County County and suggested that Ms D may need care at home after rehabilitation and that they were worried about Mr C's ability to care for Ms D. The rehabilitation unit acted correctly and obtained the correct authorisation to keep Ms D with them, enacted the formal procedure to extend their urgent authorisation and applied to put in place the standard authorisation required for Ms D to stay with them. The official assessment of the deprivation of Ms C's liberty did not take place by Kent County Council until six weeks later in September 2019 and failed to approve an extension to the urgent authorisation to for Ms D to remain in the rehabilitation unit. At the time for the official deprivation of liberty assessment in September 2019 it was determined that Ms D did not have capacity to make decisions about her care and accommodation. She was therefore referred to an Independent Mental Capacity Advocate who would work with Ms D to determine her wishes and feelings. The Independent Mental Capacity Advocate stated she would support a move home with additional support to the support already provided by Mr C. A best interests meeting was scheduled but failed to go ahead to determine the next steps but a discussion was had with Mr C over the return home of Ms D. It was only in November that the best interests meeting took place at which it was decided it would be in Ms D's best interests to move into a nursing home Kent County Council then moved Ms Dfrom the rehabilitation centre to a nursing home at the end of November 2019. Ms D eventually returned home with a care package just before Christmas. Sadly she became unwell and died in April 2020 at home. The Ombudsman found that Kent County Council had not done enough to communicate with Mr C during the process nor had they given him sufficient opportunity to express his views. It was also found that the couple's right to a private and family life under the Human Rights Act had not been given due regard and the least restrictive option for her care had not been considered. The Ombudsman said "because of the failings I have found in this case, the couple lost valuable time in their last few months together" and "because the council did not refer the dispute to the Court of Protection, the couple were also denied the opportunity to have their case considered by an independent body". As a result of this case Kent County Council have been instructed to review a number of its practices to ensure proper authorisations are in place within the legal time frames and has to review past cases and ensure future cases are dealt with appropriately. The review of historic cases is to take place from January 2019 where deprivation of liberty assessments had not been completed or were not completed within the time scales. If you would like to review the full report of this complaint here is the link https://www.lgo.org.uk/information-centre/news/2021/sep/kent-couple-lost-valuable-time-together-because-of-council-errors Deprivation of liberty cases are not straightforward and things often go wrong. If you think you may have a case to be considered due to a placement in a care home or a deprivation in a private home since January 2019 let us know as we may be able to help.

If you are used to collecting your benefits or state pension from your Post Office Card account you may find, in the not too distant future, that you cannot access your funds any more. The Post Office Card account is to close, for good, on 1 December 2021 and the Department for Work and Pensions has advised all account holders to close their accounts. This change is happening because the government's contract with the Post Office for the service will end on 30 November 2021. Over 900,000 have made use of this service to collect their pension and benefit payments. You should have been notified during the last three years of the change to the system by the Department for Work and Pensions. The letter you should have received will detail all options available to you. If you have not responded to this letter you will be written to again before November 2021. If you have not made changes to your payment don't worry because your pension and benefit payments will not stop and the payment dates will not change. The only difference will be that you cannot use your Post Office card account to withdraw your cash. If you are still using your Post Office account to collect your benefits you should notify the relevant government department, as soon as possible, with the new account details into which you wish your benefits or pension to be paid. If you do not have an account you need to open one with a bank, building society or credit union. If you are unable to open an account contact the government department dealing with your benefits for further assistance. And, don't forget, to close your Post Office Card account. You can complete a closure form at your local post office or call 0345 722 33 44

This is the fifth principle in the Mental Capacity Act, and the most complicated to understand. The legislation states that "before the act is done, or the decision is made, regard must be had to whether the purpose for which it is needed can be as effectively achieved in a way that is less restrictive of the person's rights and freedom of action". Perfectly clear! Or not! When decisions need to be made for someone who is unable to decide for themselves the question of interfering with their rights and freedoms must be considered. If the decision has to be made to place someone in a care home this, ultimately, will impact upon their freedom to come and go as they please. A decision to use a general anaesthetic instead of a local anaesthetic impacts upon freedoms and rights. Part of the decision making process will also need to consider whether it is actually necessary to act or make a decision at all. Sometimes it is better to opt to do nothing! When following the fifth principle it is necessary to look at all options and not just one. If it has been identified that Mr S cannot maintain his personal care and welfare needs and is not coping at home what would be the least restrictive option? Does Mr S need to go into a nursing home or a residential home? Could he have a 24 hour live in carer? Could he be well looked after with a domiciliary care team or does he need any support at all? By looking at each of these options, considering their relevance to the situation in hand and evaluating which is best, you are looking at whether anything can be done to prevent the restriction of rights and freedoms. It may be that the only option that is suitable for the circumstance is nursing care but the position has been considered and thoroughly reviewed. What the decision cannot do is prevent the original purpose of the decision or act from being achieved. When considering the least restrictive option you cannot forget to look at what is in the best interests of the person who lacks capacity. There are occasions such as the example above where the least restrictive option is not the most suitable. The least restrictive option here would have been to either leave Mr S with no support or to provide domiciliary support to help him around the home. Neither met the best interest threshold however, to keep him safe and secure. If you are an attorney or a deputy, or a carer or a family member it is important you understand how all principles of the Mental Capacity Act affect you in your role and the decisions you make. If you would like further advice please do not hesitate to contact us.

Historically, solicitors have been appointed to act as professional executors of estates. Whether this has been because it was the done thing or because people thought estate administration was too difficult, who knows. It is not so much the case these days as people now feel their families are more able to manage the administration of an estate themselves. There are however some wills where a professional appointment still exists and family members may not want the professional to act. There are circumstances in which a solicitor acting as an executor is a good idea namely if the estate is complicated or there are families in conflict or there may be a challenge to the estate from a disappointed beneficiary. Sometimes solicitors have refused to step down and renounce their appointment as executor and tr ustee when asked, leaving difficult relationships between them and family members during the administration period. When taking instructions about the appointment of an executor a professional should ensure that they have discussed the reasons for their appointment with the person making the will so that any request to step down can be discussed and the reasons for the appointment made clear. If a professional executor is asked to step down they do need to consider and demonstrate that they have taken steps to show whether or not it is appropriate for them to act. If you are appointed to act as an executor with a professional or are a beneficiary of a will with professional executors you should not feel afraid to ask the question about stepping down. It could save the family a lot of money but remember, professional executors do you have a role to play and you should also give careful thought as to whether that professional expertise could benefit in the long run. If you have any questions about the appointment of executors please give us a call on 01622 843729.

Funerals were not the same during covid and many families did not get to say goodbye to their loved ones in the way that they wished to. Waiting times for burials and cremation increased, families could not always attend services and things were very different. Now we are trying to adjust to life with covid, life and death will continue and we will be able to say goodbye as we wish. For some families, whose loved ones were organised, funeral plans were purchased in advance of death to make life easier when it came to make arrangements. Many of those who died from covid would have had funeral plans but were unable to have the funeral they arranged. If a cremation or burial had to take place without family attending and without the ability of choice of venue or timings the costs they paid for the funeral plan would have been in excess of the actual costs of the simpler service that they had to have. It probably did not even occur to these families to see whether they could obtain a refund for the cost of a funeral which had been paid for to include cars to transport family members, a service of remembrance, flowers and other specific requests rather than what was had. If your loved one did pay for a funeral which they could not have, as a result of the measures imposed under covid restrictions, it may be possible for you to obtain a refund on the difference in price between the funeral plan purchased and the cost of the funeral held. It is unlikely to be a refund on the whole cost but could be a refund on certain elements. A funeral plan is a legal contract. The person purchasing the plan made a payment of money in exchange for a promise of a particular service. If that service did not happen or was only fulfilled in part there is a reason to claim a refund. If you are not sure of who provided a funeral plan or whether there was one in place you can contact the Funeral Planning Authority to see whether your loved one had a prepaid plan. They will confirm the name of the provider so you can trace the funeral director to begin the conversation. For further details of the Funeral Planning Authority you can look at their website https://funeralplanningauthority.co.uk/trace-a-plan/ or you can telephone them on 0345 601 9619. If you need any help from us with this just give us a call on 01622 843729.

Once of the principles of the Mental Capacity Act is that an attorney must only act in the best interests of the person they are looking after, but what does this actually mean? As is always the case with legal things there is never a straight answer. In these circumstances the complication is that what is best for one person may not be in the best interest of another. It is also not helped by the Act not actually providing a definition! When you are looking at what is in the best interests of someone you need to consider lots of things. So, start with the question that you need to answer. Is it in the best interests for the individual to pay their gas bill? Is it in the best interest of the individual to have an operation on their eye? Is it in the best interest of the individual to ....... If you are the individual tasked with making a best interest decision for someone who lacks capacity you must take into account all the relevant factors that it would be reasonable to consider not just those you think are important. What is relevant will vary from situation to situation. You cannot work out what is in that person's best interest based on their age, appearance, condition or behaviour. You must make every effort to encourage the person who cannot make the decision to join in and express their thoughts and wishes. You need to consider whether the decision can be delayed if the individual may regain capacity. You must take into account the past and present wishes and feelings, beliefs and values of the individual who lack capacity and you must make sure that the views of others close to the individual lacking capacity are considered. You should not take shortcuts in working out what is in someone's best interests and a proper and objective assessment must be carried out for every decision you need to make. The best way to make a best interest decision is to operate a balance sheet with the pro's and con's of the decision that needs to be made. Go through the things that you think are positive and negative about the situation and conside r each in turn. Use this balance sheet as a starter to discuss with friends and family and to help determine what is a relevant factor. Finally, keep a note of the decision you make. It is not a problem for you to keep a file of all the best interests decisions you have to make. You may need to justify a decision you make in the future if it is questioned. The note you made at the time you made the best interest decision could be vital! If you are worried about making a best interests decision on behalf of another please give us a call to set your mind at rest on what to do.

Dear Servicemen & women of the UK armed forces Argo Life & Legacy are proud to have signed the Armed Forces Covenant. It is a commitment that ensures those who serve, their families and veterans will be treated fairly for all matters. Our pledge means we'll provide advice and guidance to help them in an environment where they can live with dignity and receive the respect they deserve. The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise made by the British Government to those who serve in our armed forces or their dependents. It is an agreement between the nation, those who serve and sacrifice on behalf of us all and those who are no longer able to protect themselves. The covenant recognises that members of our armed forces make/made sacrifices which may affect them or their families through periods of service, transition into civilian life and beyond; these include military operations overseas, working with allies around the world, training other nations’ militaries for peacekeeping missions at home or abroad as well as being deployed domestically to support civil authorities during emergencies such as flooding and terrorism incidents. We're excited to enter into this covenant because it aligns with our core values of community involvement. We are proud to provide legal advice to service members and their families who've made sacrifices on behalf of our country. Thank you for your service in protecting us, We are here to help protect you. Kind regards Argo Life & Legacy #forourforces

Under a new review and consultation the Department of Health is looking to raise the free prescription age to match state pension age, rather than 60. This could mean that you will not be able to claim free prescriptions until you are 66. It is thought this could impact approximately 2.4 million currently eligible people. The question being asked is "Do you think that aligning the upper age exemption with state pension age could have a differential impact on particular groups of people of communities?" If you feel you need to reply to the consultation you have until 2 September to do so and can use the following link https://consultations.dhsc.gov.uk/60f1d71d92acba45b64b5bfb You can claim a free prescriptions if you fall into the following categories:- people aged 60 or over people aged 16 or under people aged 16 to 18 who are in full time education pregnant women or those who have given birth within the last twelve months people with a medical condition and a valid medical exemption certificate those with a physical disability and a valid medical exemption which prevents them from going out those with a valid war pension exemption certificate NHS inpatients The NHS could stand to raise an additional £300million from this change by the year 2027. The National Pensioners Convention have said that raising the free prescription age would have a "massive negative effect" on health and that the prescription charges are not affordable by those on a low income. They have launched a "Save free prescriptions" campaign to convince the government of the need for free prescription for over 60s. If you want to read more about the proposals click below for the details:- https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/aligning-the-upper-age-for-nhs-prescription-charge-exemptions-with-the-state-pension-age/aligning-the-upper-age-for-nhs-prescription-charge-exemptions-with-the-state-pension-age If you need any advice or support in relation to claiming free prescriptions please contact us on 01622 843729 and our health and welfare team will be pleased to assist.