Home | Index

NEWS

Grazing licence - Let your land out safely  - if you own land and want to let it out for grazing then you must have a grazing licence.  What is it?  It is a legal agreement between you and the person you allow to use your land that  permits or 'licences them' to use your land for a fee for your stated purposes only and just for the time you set..  Very importantly it does not create an agricultural tenancy or give any permanent right of occupation.  All this for just   £18.

Horse Livery and the Animal Welfare Act 2006 - read more

The new law  - Lasting Powers of Attorney in more detail.

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 comes into force on 1 October 2007.  It changes the law of Powers of Attorneys.  These are major changes.

We shall be making them available here soon.  Come back soon.

From October 2007 you must use the Lasting Power of Attorney which is bound to cost much more.

Name Change  - If you want to change your name then our £4.99 Name Change Deed is your answer.  Not only do we completely prepare your legal document but also we give you a free guide.  This will help you with the signing and witnessing procedure and give you guidance on how and where to register the Deed.  Change My Name

Animal Welfare Act 2006  - If you have a horse livery you will need to know this. The Animal Welfare Act came into force in April 2007 and affects animals kept in England and Wales.  The Act makes it a legal requirement for those of us who offer livery to be licensed by the local authority.  The legislation is wide ranging but the full extent of the Act has not yet been implemented.  Individual local authorities may take different approaches with differing time scales.

If you live in Scotland the Animal Welfare Act (Scotland) 2006 applies and more information can be found at the Scottish Executive's website.

To find out if your local authority has implemented livery registration and licensing you should contact them direct.  However in the meantime here are some key points about registration.

• If you own and run a livery yard or you are responsible for someone else's horse/pony and receive payment for providing a livery service this affects you. The legislation is broadly drawn up and may well cover having just one horse at livery.  No minimum number of horses has been set.  It may be that small livery yards will be exempt. How many horses in a yard constitutes a livery is not clear.

• Your local aut hority will issue the licenses and they will be responsible for overseeing them.  They will have power to issue, inspect or revoke or withhold licences.   On a licensing visit the inspector will have to be accompanied by a veterinarian.  Presumably the vets fees will be included in the licence application/renewal fees.

• Licenses will run for up to 3 years.

• Livery yard owners will have to issue written regulations and codes of practice to all horse owners.  These will cover all aspects of the stabling, feeding, care and welfare of the horses. The date of implementation is to be confirmed by the government.

• If you are already registered as a livery yard owner under the British Horse Society voluntary scheme then you are exempt from registration with your local authority.

• The date from which yards must register is yet to be confirmed but you should keep in contact with your local authority and seek further information and guidance. You can also visit the DEFRA website and search the Animal Welfare Act and then look for the 'secondary legislation'.  Using secondary legislation is the way that the government sets date and some details under this Act including dates when livery yard registration will be compulsory.

• This Act also covers the welfare of many other animals ranging from farm livestock to domestic pets.  For example there will codes of practice for cat and dog owners.  These codes will apply to domestic pets kept in the home and not just to breeders and kennels.

• This section was updated on  18 July 2007.  We update this information from time to time so do visit again.

Living  Will - If you want to have a say in your care and treatment if you become ill and incapable you should make a Living Will.  What is a Living Will?  It is simply a document that you complete now while you are of sound mind and body and in which you can express your particular wishes about what medical care you want if you become very ill with for example Alzheimer's disease.  If you are so ill that you cannot express your wished then it is too late to tell your doctors and loved ones how you want to be treated. Make a Living Will

If you have concerns and views on this then you should use a Living Will to express them now in a way that is recognised.  Use our Free Guide to complete the paperwork that we email to you with notes on how to register it and review it to keep it up to date.  You can change or cancel a Living Will at any time after you have signed it before you have become incapable.

*News*

» Jump to How to Save Tax

»Do you have a home help or odd job person from time to time?  If so have you a written agreement covering the terms and conditions for the help or work they do.  Get our Home Help Agreement now and avoid problems arising from misunderstandings or differences of opinion about terms and conditions you thought were agreed.

Free Help and Guidance  - we supply detailed free help and guidance notes to help you correctly sign and witness your legal document.  You also still receive information about notifying organisations and people who ought to know about your particular legal document if necessary.

Legal Points

International travel - you need the right documents

If you plan to travel recent increased security and ID checks mean you must have the right paperwork.  If your passport does not show your current name you should change it now.  Our name change deed is the legal document you need and which is accepted by the Passport Office as the evidence of your previous and present name.   For just £4.99 you could avoid being refused entry to a foreign country.  Go to Name Change.

Return to top

Tax saving points - How to save tax with a will - the new proposed law for 2008

The rules and law have now changed.  Before the change announced in the pre-budget speech in October 2007 married couples on death could transfer almost unlimited sums to the survivor.  The survivors estate was then taxed at 40% on everything above the first £300 000. 

The new proposals re to double the final IHT relief to £600 000 for the last survivor of a marriage.  So the last surviving spouse will benefit from double the present allowance.  There must NOT have been transfers by the first spouse to die to benefit from the full £600 000 and if there have been then the value of them is deducted from the £600 000 up to £300 000.

That is it in a nutshell.  Here are some examples.

• If your married partner died before 9 October  2007 then if they left say £300 000 to you IHT was not paid.  The new rules will say that you have an allowance of £600 000 so your estate is added to the £300 000 from your late spouse and only the amount over £600 000 is taxable.  You have saved tax on £300 000  - £120 000!!

• If your spouse died before 9 October 2007 and had passed assets to children or had set up a trust to avoid IHT then you cannot benefit from the 'transfer' of the first £300 000 to you as a surviving spouse.  You should seek legal and financial advice on what to do.

However those of you who have set up trusts or nil-rate band IHT  wills to take advantage of the each spouse allowance of £300 000 may need to seek legal advice about those arrangements.  The advice may well be expensive but may also be essential.

The table below shows the current and recent tax year allowances before the change to £600 000 combined allowance for married couples in October 2007. 

The table below shows the two tax rates that might apply either to taxable transfers during lifetime or after death.

Link HM Revenue & Customs

» Follow this link to make mirror wills now.

Did you know - your online purchase is secure here.  Read about your safeguards.

Even though we sell our products at a low price we have not compromised on quality.  All documents are checked by 'humans'.

If you select the 'printed for you' option we use quality paper for your legal document/s.  You also receive our help and guidance notes printed out.

We don't just send you the document to complete on your own.  With it you get clear instructions to help you to complete it correctly in terms of signing and witnessing.

After you have executed your legal document we supply more guidance.  You receive information on who you should tell about your e.g. Name Change or Enduring Power of Attorney and what else you might need to know.

So if you know the document you want and find it here then go ahead - GET IT.  Our service is complete.  It goes beyond just a form to fill in on your own.

Advertise and Sell property here.  This new services enables you to advertise your property here at low cost.  Read more about the service and see for yourself what we can offer a seller on this web site or a separate one.

Return to top

Home | See our low prices now | Index