Understand the methods of recovering a debt, the considerations when taking action and how to enforce a CCJ.
Understand the methods of recovering a debt, the considerations when taking action and how to enforce a CCJ. If you have any difficulties downloading this PDF file then please call 01245 504904. We would be very happy to email it, or put a copy in the post.
Understand on what grounds you can challenge a Will, the process of challenging a Will and the requirements for Inheritance Act claims.
This Guide is intended as a general overview of the law in relation to Challenging a Will. If you have any difficulties downloading this PDF file then please call 01245 504904. We would be very happy to email it, or put a copy in the post.
At Leonard Gray LLP, we have been providing expert legal services in Chelmsford and Essex for over 130 years, and our team of experienced solicitors ensures that your will is handled with the utmost care and professionalism. Here’s why you should trust us with this critical task.
The CMA’s guidance specifically targets unregulated Will-writing services, which are not bound by the same professional or ethical standards as regulated firms. This lack of regulation means these businesses often lack sufficient expertise or experience to draft legally sound Wills.
Common issues with unregulated services include:
Errors in the Will:
These can render a Will invalid, leading to complications or disputes during probate.
Misleading Pricing:
Hidden fees or unclear terms can make the service more expensive than it appears.
Lack of Recourse:
If something goes wrong, clients may have limited options for redress, as these businesses are not regulated by legal bodies like the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).
By contrast, Leonard Gray LLP is a fully regulated firm, meaning that we adhere to strict professional guidelines. Our team is not only qualified but also has years of experience in estate planning, ensuring your Will is valid, your wishes are followed, and your loved ones are protected.
We understand that creating a will is a deeply personal process. At Leonard Gray, we take the time to get to know our clients, tailoring our services to suit your specific circumstances. Whether you have a straightforward estate or complex assets to distribute, our legal team provides clear and compassionate guidance.
Located in the heart of Chelmsford, we are proud to serve the Essex community. Our local presence allows us to offer a more personalised approach than larger, national services. This connection to our community means we are familiar with the needs of local families and businesses, ensuring you receive a service that reflects your values and priorities.
Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
The SRA set the rules that Leonard Gray LLP and the solicitors who work for it must follow and will take action if these rules are broken.
This means that:
If you have concerns about the service you receive you can also make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman, who may be able to help you in resolving the issue.
Decades of Expertise:
We have been serving the Chelmsford and Essex community for over 130 years, offering generations of clients the peace of mind they deserve.
Transparent Pricing:
We believe in offering clear, competitive fees with no hidden costs. You’ll always know what you’re paying for, with no surprises.
Local Knowledge:
Our deep ties to the local community ensure we provide a service that is both professional and personal.
Accredited to:
Law Society’s Wills and Inheritance Quality Scheme (WIQs) 
This shows that all our Private Client solicitors follow best
practice procedures to meet the highest standards of
technical expertise and client service in providing tailored
wills and probate advice.
The CMA’s recent guidance highlights the need for consumers to be cautious when choosing a will-writing service. At Leonard Gray LLP, we provide a regulated, trusted service, offering expert advice to ensure your Will is legally sound and your family’s future is secure.
If you’re ready to write your Will or update an existing one, contact our Chelmsford office today. Our experienced team is here to guide you through the process with care, professionalism, and the local expertise you can trust.
See what our clients have to say > CLICK HERE
The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), also made the following statement on the article from the CMA:
STEP welcomed the CMA’s actions to protect consumers from poor practice within the will writing and legal services industry. ‘We fully support the CMA’s efforts to caution unregulated providers and introduce stronger enforcement powers’, said STEP. ‘We also welcome advice to the public about what to consider when buying will-writing services.
‘Anyone can set themselves up as a will writer’, STEP noted. ‘Bad advice can cause significant distress, leaving grieving families to deal with the financial and emotional consequences. We hear all too often from the public and our members about the financial and emotional impact of poor advice from dishonest, unqualified and incompetent will writers.’ A 2023 survey of STEP members found that 79 per cent had come across wills with errors and 54 per cent were aware of other firms making false claims, such as avoiding care home fees.
‘We remain committed to ensuring that those drafting wills are appropriately qualified’, said STEP. The society sets standards for members who write wills, trusts and similar legal paperwork through its qualifications, Will Code and other tools.
Since joining Leonard Gray back in 2017, Jenna’s dedication, expertise and unwavering commitment have been unmatched and her new role as a Senior Associate Solicitor is a testament to her hard work and perseverance.
Jenna, your passion for the legal field and your dedication to your clients have undoubtedly played a pivotal role in reaching this milestone. As you continue to grow in your career, we have no doubt that your impact will only become greater, and your contributions will continue to make a difference to so many people.
Here’s to Jenna and her incredible journey at Leonard Gray Solicitors! 🥂
#Congratulations #Promotion #Success #LeonardGrayLLP
We are proud to continue to have achieved the standards of practice and integrity required to be accredited by the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme.
The Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) is a recognised quality standard for residential conveyancing practice.
The CQS client charter is designed to set client expectations on what they can expect from a CQS-accredited firm, such as ours.
Our continued membership of the scheme is your guarantee that our practice will provide you with a professional and quality conveyancing service in accordance with the scheme rules.
Whether you’re buying, selling or remortgaging – you can use our website to get an instant online quote that clearly lists all the third party conveyancing fees and stamp duty payable.
She has over six years’ experience in Commercial Property work, including lease negotiations and renewals, property portfolio management, conditional contracts, overage agreements and business refinancing.
Many second property owners have chosen to deal with the administrative side of their properties on their own, in order to avoid incurring legal costs or agency charges.
The rental sector has changed over the years, and the law behind it is becoming more and more in favour of the Tenant’s rights, rather than the Landlords. Landlords who are not familiar with their legal obligations can easily fall into the trap of not putting a break clause in the tenancy agreement, this can cause major problems further down the line.
A break clause permits either party, Landlord or Tenant, to serve notice on the other by way of Section 21 Notice under the Housing Act 1988, before the end of the term of the tenancy. Pre-COVID only 2 months’ notice was required but post-COVID this has increased to 4 months.
The minimum time before a Section 21 Notice can be served during the term is 6 months. We would, therefore, always advise that a break clause be included in any new tenancy agreement so that the earliest a Tenant or a Landlord can serve a Section 21 Notice on the 2nd month to expire on 6th month.
The reason why including a break clause is important, is that it allows a Landlord to exercise their right to evict the Tenant from the property sooner without the need to give a reason and a Section 21 Notice claim can be dealt with quickly and without need for a hearing.
There are alternative methods to gain possession of your property but these tend to only be relevant if there has been a breach of the tenancy agreement.
If you are a Landlord or an individual who has recently acquired a property as an investment, please do not hesitate to contact our Head of Dispute Resolution Maria Orfanidou at Leonard Gray LLP to discuss your legal options before entering into any new tenancy.
These are pictured left to right: Charlotte Treves (Chartered Legal Executive in the Family Team), Tiah Coles (Chartered Legal Executive in the Commercial Team), Sigourney Rutkowski (Solicitor in the Private Client Team) and Maria Orfanidou (Head of Dispute Resolution).
Chris Kelly, partner, said: “It has been such a difficult 16 months for so many people so it is really good to finally be able to share some positive news. I have been very pleased to have welcomed Maria, Charlotte, Tiah and Sigourney to Leonard Gray over the last 8 months or so. They have all settled in well and, with the experience and energy that each of them bring to their respective teams, I have no doubt that we are in a great position moving forward.
This year marks the 130th year for the firm providing legal services in Chelmsford and with the hard work of our excellent existing staff, along with these fantastic new additions, I believe that the firm is now as strong as it has ever been.”
The requirements for ensuring that a Will is validly executed (signed) are contained in Section 9 of the Wills Act 1837. It states that a Will must be in writing and signed by the testator in the presence of two witnesses. The two witnesses must then also sign the Will in the presence of the testator.
Due to the Coronavirus pandemic the signing of Wills adhering to the formalities were proving difficult, especially for those self-isolating or shielding. These difficulties were recognised and changes to the Wills Act 1837 were introduced.
The Act now provides for the ‘presence’ of those making and witnessing Wills to include a virtual presence, via video-link, as an alternative to physical presence. The amendment still requires that the Testator and witnesses have an unobstructed line of sight, and witnessing must be done in real time. Therefore witnesses cannot sign the Will having seen a pre-recorded video of the Testator signing it.
Changes to the Wills Act 1837 will apply to Wills made from 31 January 2020 and will run until 31 January 2022 (unless extended) except in limited circumstances.
The amendment did not arise until September 2020 (albeit backdated to 31 January 2020) and by this time Leonard Gray’s Private Client team had already come up with other ways Wills could be signed in the height of the pandemic.
Witnessing took place through windows, an open door of a house or in adjacent rooms, ensuring that a clear line of sight was maintained whilst keeping socially distanced. Staff attended clients wearing face masks and gloves, using hand sanitiser and taking their own pens.
Despite the amendment we continue to advise clients that witnessing via video link should only be carried out if witnessing in the conventional method is impossible. For those that have had their Wills witnessed via video link we recommend that these be re-signed and witnessed once it is safe to do so in the conventional methods, to help minimise any validity claims in the future.
At Leonard Gray LLP we are now seeing clients at the office by appointment only, where absolutely necessary, and have implemented the following guidelines to ensure our office remains Covid secure:
Should you be concerned about the validity of your Will, how it should be signed or wish to discuss any changes to it please contact a member of our team on 01245 504904.
Mutual Wills are a type of Will in which people decide to make Wills in similar terms and agree that in the future they will not revoke or amend that Will without the consent of the other party. This means that once one of the parties dies, the other person cannot change their Will.
“Mutual Wills” should not be confused with the more common “Mirror Wills” in which people make Wills in similar terms but are not “tied in” to the terms of the Will and can change them at any time.
Usually a Mutual Will contains wording to say that the parties have agreed with one another that the Wills shall not be revoked or altered during their joint lives or changed by the survivor. However, even if this wording is not included, a claim can be made at a later date that the Wills are intended to be Mutual Wills if a claimant can provide evidence to the effect that the Testators had intended that the survivor would not change the Will. Of course, proving the joint intention is much more difficult without the wording included.
In 2017 The Law Commission considered abolishing the concept of Mutual Wills but decided against it.
The main reason that people enter into Mutual Wills is that they wish to ensure specific beneficiaries inherit when both parties have passed away. This may be suitable in second marriage situations where there is a concern that the survivor could potentially disinherit the original agreed beneficiaries from one side of the family, choosing instead to distribute the “joint” estate to beneficiaries from the other side of the family.
There are other methods of dealing with an estate which can preserve assets for named beneficiaries whilst still allowing the survivor the freedom to distribute their own assets however they please. For example, a Life Interest Trust can be set up within a Will where there is a jointly held property which, on first death, would give the survivor the freedom to live in a property but secure the interests of named beneficiaries on the survivor’s death. In that situation, one half of the property would be held in trust and the other half still owned outright by the survivor. This also has the added benefit of protecting one half of the property value against potential care costs.
The usual principle when making a Will is that a person who has the necessary testamentary capacity is free to change their Will at any time. By entering into a Mutual Will both parties give up their right to change their Will if they outlive the other party regardless of the situation at that time. Similarly, they are also unable to change their Will during their joint lifetime without the other person’s consent.
The future cannot be predicted at the time of drafting the Wills and the actual situation may turn out to be totally different to the anticipated scenario. For instance, following the first death, the survivor may review the situation and decide that their children are financially secure and may wish to change the residuary beneficiaries under their Will in order to help grandchildren get onto the property ladder instead. With a Mutual Will, the survivor could not do this.
It is possible for the survivor to change the Executors of the Will, but not the beneficiaries.
It is also worth noting that after the first death a Mutual Will is not revoked on remarriage as is usually the case for “normal” Wills and the terms of the Mutual Will remains binding on the surviving testator’s estate.
If the survivor is unaware of the restriction and does make a new Will contrary to the agreement, on their death, the personal representatives will hold the assets relating to the Mutual Wills on a Constructive Trust for the beneficiaries of the earlier Will. Obviously establishing the extent of those assets (for example the value of a property and amount in bank accounts) can be problematic, especially if the first death occurred many years previously and accurate records have not been kept. This can lead to dispute and costly litigation.
Mutual Wills do serve a purpose in the context of Will preparation but they can be inflexible and restrictive. There may be alternative options which can be discussed should you wish to ensure that joint assets are preserved for certain beneficiaries after a second death scenario.