March 2016 #174 – Law Journals

Estate Administration: A bit of a gamble?

Jonathan Grogan looks at the pros and cons of removing personal representatives ‘Even if there was no will, the court may be inclined to favour the status quo and so avoid any instability and additional cost caused by removing those who have already obtained a grant of probate from office.’Applications to remove personal representatives (PRs) …

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Testamentary Capacity: Facing the facts

McCabe v McCabe [2015] reaffirms the legal test for testamentary capacity in Banks v Goodfellow [1875]. Simrun Garcha reports ‘The court must consider all the relevant evidence and draw inferences from the material in reaching its decision as to whether the propounder of the will has proved the testator knew and approved its contents.’ The …

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Business Property Relief: Room for interpretation?

Zahra Kanani outlines Green v HMRC [2015] which upholds the principle that BPR does not apply to furnished holiday lets and clarifies ‘investment’ activities. ‘From the tribunal’s analysis, it was clear that the extra services provided were insufficient to demonstrate that the business is other than “mainly” one of holding the Flagstaff property as an …

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Musings From Manchester: A poisoned chalice?

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The position of trustee is not for the faint-hearted. Geoffrey Shindler explains ‘It is a sad reflection of 21st-century life that it has become so complicated. Complexity only leads to confusion, which in turn leads to errors which finally leads to penalties. Not a happy prospect.’The following quotation of Lord Hardwicke LC in Knight v …

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Residence Nil-Rate Band: Where are we?

Jonathan Shankland and Celia Speller provide an update on the residence nil-rate band ‘Practitioners, commentators and indeed the general public alike would be well justified in feeling somewhat short changed by this new IHT “concession”. It is fair to say that the RNRB may change significantly, from its current complexion, over time.’ The residence nil-rate …

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Charities: Widening the legal framework

Mark Pawlowski asks whether political activities should be charitable ‘Should not the line be drawn between objects which are essentially political and objects which are of general social significance?’Charities are becoming more political in character and less concerned with symptomatic relief. The concept of charity today is one of public campaigning, lobbying and self-promotion. But …

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Deeds Of Variation: Clarity needed

Lucy Cooling and Sarah Wood give the lowdown on government proposals for tax planning ‘The new rules would replace the previous Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes (DOTAS) legislation relating to IHT, but unlike the current rules there is no provision in the draft legislation to accept what, in the past, has been mainstream planning.’In July …

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Disclosure: What makes data ‘personal data’?

Paul Newman QC examines claims for trust documents under the Data Protection Act 1998, with reference to Dawson-Damer v Taylor Wessing LLP [2016] ‘The critical difference between the disclosure of trust documents and privilege is that the need to maintain confidentiality in the trust document may be overridden by the exercise of the court’s discretion.’ …

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