Reserving probate and estate administration services will cause ripples in the marketplace, but ABSs will make more waves.

In his March 2012 report “Costs and customer service in a changing legal services market”, Adam Sampson, the Chief Ombudsman at the Legal Ombudsman (LeO), emphasises that customers are at the centre of what every legal services provider does. The report contains a number of stories in which he identifies that the uncertainty surrounding the cost of legal services generally, law firms’ lack of clear pricing policies and poor customer communication, as being the source of most complaints to LeO. He singles out the traditional practice of charging open-ended hourly rates for special criticism, saying that customers have the right to know in advance what the cost of buying legal services will be.

From November 2011 Kings Court Trust Corporation will be known more simply as Kings Court Trust. Along with this change, we have a new brand, logo and website and so do take a look at www.kctrust.co.uk and let us know what you think.

When somebody we love dies, it can knock even the most emotionally sturdy of us completely sideways. The strength of our reaction will depend not only on how the person died, but also on our relationship with them. Cynthia Spillman shares her experience of bereavement and offers advice to the newly bereaved and those supporting them and tries to answer the question 'what to do when someone dies?'

As consumers, we are forever looking for a bargain – perhaps especially these days - and the world of estate administration is no exception. Some people are capable of administering a deceased parent’s, or spouse's, estate without professional assistance – although anyone contemplating this should be alive to the pitfalls that await the unwary - the cost of probate provided by a professional is often small in relation to the stress created, and time needed, in even a simple case. In this article I will show, based on my experience, some of the things you will need to be aware of, should you decide to administer an estate yourself.

Although it can be risky, administering an estate is usually relatively straightforward to the experienced practitioner. Occasionally, though, some elements of a particular estate will test the mettle of the best. Nicholas Beetham looks at a recent “perfect storm” estate which, although demanding, presented no more than a welcome challenge to Kings Court, who administered it smoothly and without fuss.

It has long been the case that gifts in Wills provide a vital source of income for charities. It may surprise you to learn that many charities state that 80% of their voluntary donations come from legacy income.

Recent publicity has highlighted the need for care when appointing executors to one’s will. Banks have come in for bruising criticism of their charges for acting as executor and, on 17th March 2011, The Law Society issued a practice note to solicitors setting out their responsibilities to their clients in this regards. Nicholas Beetham discusses the issues you should consider when choosing your executors and sets out a useful checklist to help you make the right decision.

Dealing with overseas assets can give even the most patient executor a continent-sized headache. Nicholas Beetham looks at how Kings Court’s in-house expertise calmly deals with an element of estate administration whose frequency is on the increase.