Trusts

Trusts are used to help you plan for the future – for example, passing your wealth on to children or grandchildren, paying for school fees or a care home, or as part of your tax planning.

What are will trusts?

A will trust is something you set up to benefit the people you want to pass on money or possessions to. After your death it will come into effect and the trustees who you have named, are given control over the assets covered by the trust. They must manage the trust on behalf of the beneficiaries of the trust. You can be specific about how much each person gets and when, or you can allow the trustees to decide; it is common to leave a letter of wishes to indicate your thoughts.

What can a will trust be used for?

They can be used in a range of ways, however common uses for trusts include:

paying for your children or grandchildren’s future education
providing resources specifically to care for loved ones who are vulnerable in some way
leaving money or a house to support your spouse from a second marriage while they are still alive, but ensuring that those assets will then go to children from the first marriage after the second spouse has died.

Setting up a trust

Our trusts specialists, including lawyers and tax accountants, can help you use and manage trusts effectively and stay the right side of the regulations. At the outset, we’ll help you decide what type of trust is right for you. We have particular expertise in the creation of:

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Our trust service

We know that trusts can be difficult and daunting. So our job is to make the process as simple for you as possible. Our services cover:

setting up a trust to do exactly what you need it to do
taking care of the trustees, setting up their appointment and making sure they get clear, tailored advice on how to fulfil their duties under the trust, for example, staying on top of a shifting legal and taxation landscape.
acting as professional trustees
managing the tax liability efficiently
tax submissions are completed on time and accurately
tax efficient ways of making trust distributions
day-to-day administration
managing trustees
winding-up a trust.

Tees also offers independent financial advice and our wealth management colleagues can offer you a seamless service with investment advice, to ensure all your trust affairs are managed efficiently.

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Frequently asked questions

The answers to many of your questions can be found here, please get in touch for further information.

What happens to my money if I die without a will?

If you die without a will, your money will be distributed under the rules of intestacy. Under intestacy rules, your next of kin can inherit your money and assets according to a strict order of priority.

If you have a spouse or civil partner and children, then your spouse/ civil partner would receive the first £250,000 of your estate and personal chattels. Anything above this amount would be split as to half for the surviving spouse/ civil partner and half equally between your children. If any of your children have predeceased you, then their share may pass to any surviving children of theirs.

If you should pass away without any surviving spouse/civil partner, children or grandchildren then your estate shall pass in accordance with the following order of priority:

Parents
Brothers and sisters (or their children)
Half-brothers and sisters (or their children)
Grandparents
Uncles and aunts (or their children)
Half-uncles and aunts (or their children)

If you have no surviving relatives as described above, then your estate would pass to the Crown. Having a properly written will in place means your wishes are known and can be carried out after your death.

What are the benefits of having a will?

The benefits of having a properly written will include:

You choose who inherits from your estate
You can choose someone to trust to administer your estate
Your family know what your wishes are
Gives the opportunity for estate and inheritance tax planning and management
Makes appropriate provisions for minors or dependents
Assists your estate in the event that the will is contested.

What is the ‘national will register’?

The National Will Register is an official register of wills in the UK. It is approved by the Law Society and used by many solicitor firms. If your will is registered, solicitors can easily find it after your death.

Do I need to register my will?

No – it’s not compulsory to register your will on the National Will Register. However, if you register your will it can make it easier for your family to know what your wishes are after your death.

What are the requirements for a valid will?

In order to be valid, a will should be:

Made by a person over the age of 18
Made in writing; the will can be handwritten or typed
Made by a person with mental capacity, who understands what they are doing
Made voluntarily and without pressure
Signed by the person making the will, with two witnesses present
Signed by two witnesses, in the presence of the person making the will, after they have signed the will themselves.

How does divorce impact a Will?

Many people wrongly believe that a divorce automatically cancels or invalidates a Will. Similarly, individuals with an existing Will may neglect to review it after a divorce, unaware of the potential implications. Divorce can significantly affect the provisions of a Will, an often overlooked issue. It is essential to update a will whenever there is a major change in circumstances, such as a divorce. Our specialist team can help review your will.

Contact us today

If you’d like to meet one of our experts for a confidential, no obligation chat, please get in touch.

Telephone

0800 013 1165

Office locations
Bishop’s Stortford
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All legal services provided by Tees are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Tees is a trading name of Stanley Tee LLP is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA Number 464615) and is registered in England and Wales number OC327874.

All financial services provided by Tees are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Tees and Tees Wealth are trading names of Tees Financial Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales number 4342506. Registered office address Tees House, 95 London Road, Bishop’s Stortford CM23 3GW.

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