A recent article from the Telegraph revealed how a personal representative was left with a staggering Inheritance Tax (IHT) bill of £341,278 when he was administering a £1.2 million estate. Mr Harris misguidedly distributed the assets to the beneficiaries before all of the Inheritance Tax had been paid. He did this with the understanding that one beneficiary (who received the majority of the estate) would pay any Inheritance Tax that was still owed. However, this did not happen as the beneficiary left the country without paying, leaving Mr Harris to foot the bill.

Ordinary individuals inheriting assets from overseas could risk criminal charges if they miscalculate the tax owed, reports The Telegraph.

Kings Court Trust firmly believes in the benefits of having a professional help draft a Will to ensure that everybody’s final wishes are made clear and carried out accurately. Drafting a Will and carefully considering what is to happen to our finances is not the most cheery of topics, but one that should be taken very seriously.

The 14th of May this year has seen the Inheritance and Trustees Powers Act 2014 (ITPA 2014) receive Royal assent meaning that, as of the commencement date of 1 October 2014, significant changes to the intestacy procedures, rules regarding claims against an estate and certain powers of Trustees will come into practice. ITPA 2014 amends already existing legislation, namely:

Hugh Lowther, the eldest son of the seventh Earl of Lonsdale, has been left with no other option but to sell his family's mountain in the English Lake District to cover Inheritance Tax (IHT) liabilities on his late father's estate. The decision of the new earl has brought much attention as the sale of Saddleback Fell is probably the first property divestment of its kind, the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) reports.

Kings Court Trust (KCT) recently hosted free CPD seminars for our colleagues in Newcastle, Crawley and Cambridgeshire areas.

The Centre for Death & Society (CDAS) was established in September 2005 and is based at the University of Bath, just up the hill from the Kings Court Trust (KCT) office. CDAS conducts internationally recognised research on the social aspects of death,dying, and bereavement and has a broad community of members and doctoral candidates.

The Office of National Statistics (ONS) has published an analysis of inheritance patterns in the UK.

Kings Court Trust (KCT) was delighted to welcome so many of its existing partners as well as new faces to seminars held this October in Newbury, Haydock and Coventry.