MUM’S THE WORD AT ROYAL WILLIAM YARD THIS WEEKEND
25th March 2022
Steve Evans Illustration
25th March 2022
Thinking about writing your own Will can be a scary and daunting prospect however, it’s fundamental that you have a Will in place to help ensure the people you love will receive what you want them to have upon your death. Raegan Leather and her team at Woollcombe Yonge are confident you will receive a simple and straightforward process along with a friendly face and no confusing legal jargon. We caught up with Raegan, head of the Wills, Trusts and Probate department at Woollcombe Yonge Solicitors to find out more about how she became a solicitor and why you should make a Will.
Raegan began her career journey struggling to decide between studying medicine or law at university. Raegan is a people person at heart and always likes being around people and helping them which meant law naturally became her subject of choice. After 4 years at Plymouth University with a degree and a postgraduate degree in Law under her belt, she was quickly welcomed into Wolferstans Solicitors as a paralegal in the negligence team. By 2015, Raegan qualified as a Solicitor.
With the ambition to push herself further, she moved to Woollcombe Yonge in 2018, at the age of 28 and settled into the friendly team of Wills, Trusts and Probate. Raegan had always known about Woollcombe Yonge as being a reputable law firm after having seen them at talks and fairs during her time at Plymouth University.
Raegan Leather
Woollcombe Yonge is the oldest law firm based in Plymouth which has been trading as the same name for over 250 years!
Raegan is now a fully qualified Associate Solicitor and has recently been promoted to Head of Department in January 2022. Within the tight-knit Wills, Trusts & Probate department there are 3 solicitors and 2 administrators with hopes to expand the team further in the near future.
My mother was a late client of Raegan Leather. The entire process of drafting and completing the Will was to my mother’s total satisfaction. Raegan was extremely patient and always available on the other end of the phone whenever needed – Ms P
Do I need a Will?
Yes, everybody needs a Will even if you don’t think you’re wealthy enough. You never know what you might have when you pass away so it’s always worth writing one. A Will needs to be a legally binding document that has to be signed off correctly for the Will to become valid. This is worth bearing in mind if you have written your own Will.
You can include anything you like in your Will therefore you don’t need to own an estate or be married. Often people include funeral wishes, where they’d like their ashes to be scattered, what would happen to their children, and their pets, the distributing of money and personal belongings as well as their estate.
It is common for children to be left money in a Trust which means they will have access to their inheritance once they turn a certain age. The money can be used to pay for tuition fees if requested within the Will but the child will be unable to see the money until they are old enough.
It is also very common for pets to be left a lump sum of money to be looked after. They will need to know how much money you are giving to them, where you’d like them to go, their plans for when they pass away.
Pets are replacement children for a lot of adults and ensuring they are well looked after when you pass is something not to forget about otherwise, they will be sent to a rehoming shelter.
What happens if I don’t make a Will?
Raegan is currently administering an estate whereby the owner had left a hand-written Will that had not been legally signed off. The owner wished for the money and estate to be passed down to his neighbours however because his Will wasn’t legally binding, the money and estate had to be passed onto distant relatives.
A case such as this becomes increasingly more complex without a legally bound will in place. Woollcombe Yonge are very realistic and up-front from the beginning, notifying you that it won’t be a quick process but it will be easy to understand and once it’s done, they will store it free of charge.
Woollcombe Yonge understands that making a Will and going through this process is a daunting and scary thing to do, especially since it’s about your own death. Therefore, they are always available for a chat over the phone with you or your relatives upon your death.
Making the decision to write a Will can come after a sudden and unexpected life event or as you get older. The minimum age you have to be to write a Will is 18.
What happens when I make a Will with Woollcombe Yonge?
Firstly, you will book a meeting with a Solicitor in the Wills Trusts and Probate department. If you already have a Will and want to make some changes to it then they will need a copy of that Will. Your previous Will doesn’t have to be written by Woollcombe Yonge for them to be able to make the changes.
You will then sit down with the Solicitor and they will help to work out your estate worth. They will also need to know your marital status, whether you have any children, your wider family and any family relatives that you don’t see. They will then ask you if you have any tax implications and where you’d like everything to go.
Woollcombe Yonge are down to earth solicitors that like to build and maintain good relationships with their clients. Their level of communication is above the general expectation and they pride themselves on achieving this with every single client if the client wants it.
The majority of their clients are older therefore, they can have difficulties getting to their office. Raegan and her team will visit homes, nursing homes and hospitals if the client is unable to meet them at the office.
The Wills, Trusts & Probate department
What are Bequeathed Wills?
Woollcombe Yonge offers a ‘Will for Good’ system whereby you can generate your Will using a free online service. If your wishes are simple, Bequeathed with send you a Will for signing. If your needs are more complex however, you will be referred to us for legal advice. Woollcombe Yonge was the first law firm on board with this in Plymouth in an effort to encourage people to put Wills into place and to support charity at the same time.
What is the cost of a will from Woollcombe Yonge?
£275 + vat for a simple Will, £375 + vat for a couple. This is the base price however and the cost will increase if you wish to put a trust into place for example.
What is Probate?
Probate is essentially the process of administering the estate of someone who has passed away. This may involve carrying out funeral wishes, valuing the house, dealing with any tax liabilities and distributing assets in accordance with the Will.
This is a fairly long process that can take 6-12 months to complete, although often longer if the estate is more complicated.
What are Lasting Powers of Attorney?
LPAs are legal documents which everyone should put into place. They allow you to appoint others to act on your behalf in relation to your finances and health should you be unable to, whether that be through illness
or otherwise.
You must have mental capacity at the time you put Powers of Attorney in place and if you do not put these in place in time, the process for allowing others to act as your attorney is time-consuming and costly, involving an application to the court.
Raegan and her team offer a down-to-earth approach that is friendly and easy to understand. They want their clients to feel at ease when dealing with a potentially daunting matter. Writing your Will is also important to get right, therefore, Raegan and her team can ensure that all of your worries and confusion will be left at the door of the office on Bretonside.
