Our New Recruit

7th November 2011

Hart Jackson and Sons are pleased to welcome our newest recruit Lynne Kellett into the firm. Lynne joins the firm as a trainee and will be undertaking her two year training contract to become a solicitor with us. Returning from a period of working in London to her home town of Ulverston we at Hart Jackson and Sons are looking forward to working with Lynne who has a background in employment law.

Stamp Duty

29th May 2011

Stamp Duty is payable on properties which are bought for more than £125,000.  The rate varies according to the price paid and whether the property is residential or commercial.  The amount due is calculated on the full price of the property and not just the amount in excess of £125,000.  There are some reliefs, for example a first time buyer will not pay stamp duty on a property bought for less than £250,000 saving up to £2,500.  At the moment this relief is available until the 31st December 2011.

 If you would like more information on this point please telephone us and ask to speak to Sharon Clarke

Family Procedure Rules

10th April 2011

The New Family Procedure rules have now come into force, marking the biggest change in family procedure for over 20 years. The aim of the new rules is to ‘enable the court to deal with cases justly, having regard to any welfare issues involved’

The New rules aim to simplify family proceedings, including divorce petitions, applications involving financial relief arising out of divorce and applications involving children.

The biggest change to the court procedure is that anyone wishing to apply to the Court, in relation to their children or their finances during the course of a divorce, will have to attend a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting. The Mediator will explain what mediation has to offer and will explore with the client whether or not mediation would be suitable. This new provision applies to both privately paying clients and those in receipt of Legal Aid.

The pre-action protocol which accompanies the new rules notes that ‘there is a general acknowledgment that an adversarial court process is not always best-suited to the resolution of family disputes, particularly private law disputes between parents relating to children, with such disputes often best resolved through discussion and agreement, where that can be managed safely and appropriately’

If the parties to such a dispute still wish to make an application to the court the mediator will have to complete a Form confirming that they have attempted mediation or, alternatively confirming why mediation was not considered suitable in their particular case.

The requirement for mediation does not apply to cases involving domestic violence or child protection.

If you require any further information in respect of any of these issues, please do not hesitate to contact our family department. 

The Budget 2011 – Changes to Inheritance Tax

31st March 2011

The government announced in it’s Budget last week that from 6^th April 2012 people who leave 10% of their estate to charity will benefit from a 10% reduction in Inheritance Tax. What this means is that the Inheritance Tax rate for these estates will be 36% instead of 40%.

Whilst the finer details are still being worked out this promises to be a good opportunity for those considering leaving gifts to charity in their Will to benefit from a reduced tax rate with the result that your estate will go further, maximising gifts to charity and your loved ones.

Should you be considering making a Will or revising your current Will to make the most of these planned changes then you may like to contact us for an appointment.