Community and residential care

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Brexit legislation tracker

This Practice Note tracks the progress of UK legislation introduced as part of the legislative project associated with the UK’s withdrawal from the

Administration actions—removal of personal representatives—practice and procedure

Coronavirus (COVID-19): As announced on 17 April 2020, the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, authorised District Probate

Deeds

Under English law legally binding agreements can be made orally, in writing or by deed.This Practice Notice considers the circumstances in which a

Appointment, retirement and resignation of a director

BREXIT IMPACT: The information to be given when appointing a corporate director will be affected by Brexit. For further details, see Impact of Brexit

Practice notes

Application for a grant of representation

FORTHCOMING CHANGE: The Non-Contentious Probate (Amendment) Rules 2020, SI 2020/1059 amend the Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987, SI 1987/2024 with...

13th Oct

Practice notes

Administration actions—removal of personal representatives—practice and procedure

Coronavirus (COVID-19): As announced on 17 April 2020, the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, authorised District Probate...

Produced in partnership with Mark Lindley of Boodle Hatfield LLP 9th Oct

Practice notes

Requirements for a valid Will

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19): The formal requirement for a valid Will to be witnessed in the presence of two witnesses is to be relaxed (with retrospective...

9th Oct

Practice notes

Appointment of personal representatives

Coronavirus (COVID-19): As announced on 17 April 2020, the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, authorised District Probate...

9th Oct

Practice notes

The type of grant needed

Coronavirus (COVID-19): As announced on 17 April 2020, the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, authorised District Probate...

8th Oct

Practice notes

Practice and procedure—civil procedure—contentious trusts and estates

Coronavirus (Covid-19): For news and other resources to assist dispute resolution practitioners working in the civil courts to understand and stay...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Fast find key precedents—probate matter

Most of the work conducted throughout a probate matter is of a common nature. Consequently practitioners will find that they are, in essence,...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Estate administration—foreign assets and domiciles

Coronavirus (COVID-19): As announced on 17 April 2020, the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, authorised District Probate...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Administration actions—applications during the course of estate administration

The major problem personal representatives (PRs) and/or beneficiaries encounter when faced with an actual or potential probate claim is how to, at the...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Introduction to Wills

Definition and purpose of a WillIn general terms, a Will is a document made in accordance with the formal requirements laid down by section 9 of the...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Removal, renunciation and retirement of personal representatives

The rights of a person appointed executor by a Will cease if they:•die without having taken out probate•fail to appear on being cited to take out...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Total intestacy

The intestacy rulesIf the deceased died intestate, Parts III and IV of the Administration of Estates Act 1925 (AEA 1925) apply to:•all the movable...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Executors, trustees and guardians—who are they?

ExecutorsAn executor is the person appointed by the Will to carry into effect its provisions and to administer the property of the testator. The...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Revocation of Will

Revocation of a WillA Will is revocable at any time during the testator's lifetime. A testator may not revoke their Will in any manner they choose: a...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Personal representatives—powers, duties and remuneration

Personal representatives' dutiesThe Administration of Estates Act 1925 (AEA 1925) states that personal representatives (PRs) must:•collect and get in...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Payment of legacies

IdentificationThe personal representatives (PRs) must identify:•the beneficiary entitled•what each beneficiary is entitled to receive•the time at...

25th Sep

In-house

Most recent Community and residential care content

Practice notes

Care funding options

Note: This Practice Note must be read in the light of the implementation of the Care Act 2014 on 1 April 2015. Substantial repeals to legislation have...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Independent mental capacity advocates

Note that this Practice Note addresses only English law. Following devolution there are now differences between the English and Welsh rules on many...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Guide to Care Act 2014 repeals

With the coming into effect of part of the Care Act 2014 (CA 2014) in April 2015 there will be a number of repeals, revocations and cancellations of...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Benefits and means testing

There are a number of benefits that older people can claim that carry a financial eligibility requirement. In practice this means that if their...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Eligibility for residential accommodation

When an assessment concludes that an adult requires residential accommodation they have the choice, depending on their personal finance situation,...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Nursing and residential care contracts

When entering a care home, the future relationship between the new resident and the administrators of the home should be governed by the terms of a...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Coronavirus (COVID-19)—Care and Support Needs Assessments

Community care assessments are conducted by the local authority (LA) where someone aged 18 years or older is ordinarily resident. LAs have a duty to...

26th Sep

COVID-19

Practice notes

Assessment for residential accommodation

Coronavirus (COVID-19): The content of this Practice Note is temporarily affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. For further guidance, see:...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Care and support needs assessments

Coronavirus (COVID-19): The content of this Practice Note is temporarily affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. For further guidance, see...

27th Sep

Q&As

A local authority has two charges registered against a freehold property in Wales in respect of care charges under the Health and Social Services and Social Security Adjudications Act 1983. The service user and sole owner of the property died intestate two years ago, however to date a grant of representation has not been obtained and so the debt for care fees remains unpaid. Is it possible to force a sale as creditor to discharge the debt, as the charges take effect as a legal mortgage under the Law of Property Act 1925?

The regime under the Health and Social Services and Social Security Adjudications Act 1983 (HSSSSAA 1983) allows for the charging of the provision of...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 28th Sep

Q&As

A surviving spouse is left an interest in possession in half of the matrimonial home in the Will of the deceased spouse. The Will contains a provision such that if the property is sold in the surviving spouse’s lifetime, the proceeds pass down to children. If this occurs prior to the surviving spouse going into care, could this be deemed to be a gift made by the surviving spouse for the purpose of deliberately depriving themselves of assets under the Care Act 2014?

In this Q&A, it would appear that the deceased spouse had a 50% interest in the matrimonial home. It is to be assumed that the other 50% was owned by...

Produced in partnership with Helen Galley of XXIV Old Buildings 28th Sep

Q&As

Are life policies classed as exempt assets by the local authority when determining an individual’s capital in assessing how much they must contribute towards their care fees? Are personal representatives obliged to report to the local authority if assets come to light after death that were not included in their financial assessment of the deceased’s capital?

Various types of assets and property are disregarded for the purposes of assessing a person’s liability to contribute towards their costs of care...

28th Sep

Q&As

Can an elderly client give their property to their children to limit the amount of nursing home fees they will need to pay if that becomes necessary without suffering adverse consequences?

The Care Act 2014 (CA 2014) requires a local authority to assess an individual’s need for care and support.A local authority (LA) has the right to...

28th Sep

Q&As

How can we appeal to appeal a decision of a local authority to move a client under the court of protection, who has fallen below the funding threshold, to another home where funding levels are cheaper?

Where the client is under the Court of Protection and the client does not have the requisite capacity to make the application themselves, a decision...

28th Sep

Q&As

My client owns a nursing home and one of the residents (who has sufficient funds) stopped paying their fees 18 months ago when they discovered the local authority paid other residents’ fees. The local authority refuses to help find the resident an alternative place. My client will pursue recovery of the debt and wishes to return the resident to their own home. The resident will not be able to manage at home and my client does not wish to be liable for any accidents that occur. Can the nursing home remove the resident?

The arrangements between a capacitous individual and their care provider are usually subject to written contract which will determine the basis for...

28th Sep

Q&As

I have been asked by a surviving spouse (following the death of her husband) to prepare a deed of variation to create a life interest for herself in her late husband's 50% of the matrimonial home. I am concerned that this could be considered a deprivation of assets by the local authority if the surviving spouse went into a home. Is there any guidance on this?

This response deals solely with deprivation of capital in the context of means testing of benefits that may be available in the event that an...

28th Sep

Q&As

Could a claim for repayment of care fees be barred, eg. under the Limitation Act 1980 or otherwise?

The liability to pay care fees is often a source of resentment, as the state expects most people to fund, or contribute to, the cost of their care....

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 28th Sep

Q&As