It was common knowledge that when the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, announced his comeback tour, ‘This Is It’, back in March he was in need of the estimated £30 million fortune the O2 arena concerts would earn him.

It was no secret that Jackson lived in luxury and had never needed to understand the value of money, but with constant rumours regarding his financial affairs and his choice to live abroad with the Royalty of Bahrain, it seemed this was a lifestyle he was becoming increasingly unable to afford. I n March 2008, the singer reportedly defaulted on a $23 million loan and nearly had to give up his 2,500-acre Santa Barbara estate ‘Neverland’ to secure the loan.

When Jackson died last month, questions, rumour and speculation immediately ensued regarding the cause, reasons and the future of his estate and children. What is not being given as much attention at this time, but is set to maintain the Jackson profile in the future, is the number of predicted lawsuits that are being prepared by creditors and investors all wanting remuneration from the Jackson estate.

When Katie Price took to the airwaves in order to explain on primetime Saturday evening television why her marriage to Peter Andre was over, even a highly experienced divorce lawyer such as myself felt a certain sorrow. It wasn’t necessarily for the individuals involved, but for a very sad example of modern marital union, then separation.

The majority of marriage failures are both unfortunate and hurtful, especially when children are involved, but the reason I feel a certain sympathy (and element of puzzlement) for this couple’s particular plight was due to the way their extraordinary public lives had trapped them into a bizarre way of communicating with each other.

Whether it be through magazine deals, autobiographies or reality television shows, they laid their entire lives bare to the media and while this no doubt brought financial gain, it seems the couple have literally paid the ‘Price’ for this media-induced lifestyle.

In her televised interview with Piers Morgan, Price blames the fact that their career as a professional couple was partly to blame for their split, but my suspicion is that it was their lack of a genuinely private life that inevitably led to their problems in relating to each other on a personal level. Bickering, squabbling and outright rowing made for entertaining television and may have made viewers feel better about their own relationships, but when the cameras were off, what was there left to say?

Two lawyers from Southampton legal firm, Eric Robinson Solicitors, are celebrating after having run the London Marathon in aid of The Rose Road Association.

After months of training and preparation, David Lee, 32, and Laura Pittam, 29, ran the 26.2 mile course through the streets of London in order to raise funds for the Southampton charity which provides services for children and young adults with profound and multiple disabilities.

‘The training was hard work and I was in some pain by the end of the race, but the overwhelming sense of achievement and the amount of money we raised for such an important cause made it all worth while,’ said David, who completed the raise in 5 hours 18 minutes.

The two colleagues, who convinced each other to take part in the race while at work, far exceeded their initial target and have raised over £5,300.

After a deluge of media coverage concerning the fall in house prices and over the winter, Amanda Clarke, Conveyancer at Eric Robinson Solicitors in Hythe, is now welcoming the early signs of a recovering property market.

As Spring arrives with warmer weather and longer days, it has been with much relief that we have seen the first green shoots of the housing market beginning to rise. Fellow conveyancers and estate agents may think that I am jinxing these early steps towards a more favourable situation by writing about them, but I think it is only right that if the public has been bombarded with depressing details of our difficulties in tough times, that we let them know when things are getting better.

Here at Eric Robinson Solicitors in Hythe, a place where I grew up and have family, there has been a significant increase in the number of conveyancing matters we have been asked to take on. Some say it is as a result of optimism brought on by the return of the sunshine, but I believe there are more practical reasons for the change

I have read a great deal of speculation concerning how married couples with plans to divorce are being hampered and restricted by the current economic climate. Whether it be due to difficulty in selling a marital home or lack of funds for legal representation to sort out an acrimonious dispute, one could easily assume that there are couples all over the country forced into undesirable living situations. Whilst this may be the case for some, I have my doubts that it can be applied as a general rule.

Though I believe my particular area of the legal profession offers a great service to the confused, distressed and vulnerable, I understand that I deal with situations that are less than desirable and can be particularly unpleasant. Unfortunately, the amount of instruction I received over the past few months has been similar to the post -Christmas aftermath of previous years.

In very few of my recent cases has the financial climate been a direct issue or even cited as a reason for the breakdown. One couple did feel it was sensible to rent out their marital home and put their property up for sale later in the year (which was a wise move as the market seems to picking up), but in most cases this is just detail.

Over the last few months, my colleagues and I have received an increasing number of enquiries about ‘Lasting Power of Attorneys’ or ‘LPA’s and an important issue has become very clear - the matter of timing.

An LPA enables you to set up a document that appoints another person aged 18 or over to act on your behalf and make decisions for you if you lose the ability to manage your affairs. LPAs need to be put in place well before they are ever needed, i.e. prior to the person who is in need of assistance becoming ill and/or losing their mental capacity.

I have become more and more aware of this following various individual cases that were all too late to execute an LPA. Each person we spoke to thought they could set up an LPA themselves and didn’t realise it has to be requested, agreed and authorised by the person in need of it. Whilst we were able to assist them with ‘Deputyship’ at court, this is a much more expensive and lengthy process, even spouses will need to obtain deputyship in most cases.

After six years of intense legal battle, a young man is giving credit and thanks to his solicitor for securing the future of both himself and his miracle family.

In August 2001, teenager Anthony Burton was involved in a horrific car accident that left him paralyzed from the neck down and his girlfriend of just three months, Jenny Haynes, in need of extensive metalwork surgically implanted to hold her spine in place.

After the initial physical, mental and emotional anguish they suffered, the couple continued their relationship, moved in together and, despite all they had been told by doctors, the couple became parents in 2004 with the birth of their son, Cameron.

After a lengthy legal process, Anthony now has peace of mind that he and his family will be looked after with a record payout of £6.4 million for all his future needs.

‘After the accident I never gave up on life, but I never dreamed I could ever be this happy,’ says Anthony, 24. ‘Fighting in the courts when you are in my position was never going to be easy and I have to thank our solicitor, Allison, for everything she has done for us.

In times of economic uncertainty, there will always be winners and losers, but it is with an element of surprise that Lucy Jones, a commercial property specialist in the Commercial Team at Eric Robinson Solicitors, has seen Hampshire businesses quickly realise their upper hand as tenants and strike impressive deals as a result. Could this be the end of the reign of the landlord?

It cannot have escaped anyone’s notice that the last few months have seen a dramatic shift in supply and demand when it comes to property, but I have seen first hand that businesses in Hampshire are becoming increasingly confident when discussing the renewal of tenancy agreements for their premises.

At a time when companies are reluctant to commit to new financial and legal obligations, tenants are maximising the one position of strength an economic downturn provides and bargaining for the most favourable lease terms in many years.

Law firm raises over half a million pounds for Cancer Research

One of Southampton’s largest law firms has been thanked by the UK’s leading cancer charity for raising an outstanding amount of donations through its national fundraising scheme.

There was a tremendous sense of elation amongst members of the Wills & Probate Team at Eric Robinson Solicitors when nationwide charity, Cancer Research, revealed that the firm had raised over £500,000 since it became involved with the organisation’s ‘Free Will Service’.

The scheme, which offers people over the age of 55 the opportunity to make or update a standard Will with Cancer Research UK bearing some, if not all of the costs, has proved highly popular with hundreds of clients that specialists at Eric Robinson Solicitors have seen since they became involved in the scheme in 2002.

I know in these times of uncertainty and unease, businesses and financial institutions are doing their level best to increase their productivity and client satisfaction, but over the last few months I have seen more than one case of a client having experienced what I consider to be a disservice from their bank.

A few months ago, without any discussion with my profession, the banks and building societies decided to raise the threshold of the amount of money that could be accessed from a deceased person’s estate without the need for Probate.

Take, for example, one of my recent clients who had been widowed and made an appointment at the bank of her late husband to discuss his financial matters. She was told that the bank account in her husband’s name contained less than £15,000 so if she signed an indemnity form, she could simply take the money there and then without the need for Probate to legally grant her rights to the money.

At the end of last year, in the run up to Christmas, a gentleman came to see me about making a Will. As with all clients, I spent time getting to know him, his circumstances and what assets he had accumulated over the years, which inevitably led to my asking him about his motivation for coming to see me.

He smiled and said with a chuckle, ‘It’s a Christmas Present.’ I was rather surprised at this answer and jovially enquired as to whether his wife and children might be somewhat deflated when discovering this gift on Christmas morning, but I was told ‘It isn’t for them, it’s for me.’

He explained that with all his family coming to stay at his house for Christmas, the constant media coverage on the economy and the increase of people succumbing to illness this winter, he had decided to give himself peace of mind by ensuring his family were looked after and cared for if he wasn’t around to do so himself.

Just when it seemed impossible for celebrities to do anything in private, Madonna and Guy Ritchie avoided a potentially bloody and high profile battle by settling their divorce. In this article, Catherine Maxfield, Partner & Matrimonial Solicitor for Eric Robinson Solicitors examines the value of a personal support and amicable resolution.

Whether it was to avoid the media circus that engulfed Paul McCartney’s acrimonious divorce from Heather Mills early last year or Madonna’s desire to protect her personal fortune estimated at £300 million, it is refreshing that personal affairs, even between two such famous people, can be conducted with discretion and maturity.

Ritchie would have been entitled to 50% of his soon to be ex-wife’s fortune, but it was reported that he was more concerned about the custody of their sons, Rocco, eight, and David, three, who the couple adopted from Malawi in 2006. The boys will now be spending time in both the States and UK as both parents intend to live in their native countrie

In the past few months, I have been getting a number of enquiries asking about ‘Lasting Powers of Attorney’ or ‘LPA’s, so I thought I would devote this month’s column to a basic introduction and explanation for what seems to be of great concern to a lot of people at the moment:

What is an LPA?

An LPA enables you or another person aged 18 or over (the ‘Donor’) to appoint another person (the ‘Donee’ or ‘Attorney’) to act on your behalf and make decisions for you if you lose your mental capacity to do so. This has replaced the ‘Enduring Power of Attorney’, with the main difference being you can now choose to delegate decisions affecting your personal welfare, as well as those concerning property and finance, in two types of LPA

It has been a year since Alistair Darling announced one of the most significant changes to the rules for Inheritance Tax for many years. At the time of its introduction, a transferable Nil Rate Allowance (NRA) was hailed by many as a substitution for a tax efficient Will, but 12 months on, it looks like this prediction was rather premature.

Before October 2007, if both parties of a marriage or civil partnership wanted to ensure they could use their full Nil Rate Allowance, they had to write their Wills in a specific way and often use a ‘Discretionary Trust’. Then the Chancellor announced that, in future, when a surviving spouse died, their executors would be able to claim two NRAs before their estate and assets were subject to Inheritance Tax.

Whilst this was not the ‘doubling’ of the NRA allowance, (as it was misleadingly described) it did mean that a couple could protect a joint estate worth up to £624,000. This seemed to negate the need for Discretionary Trusts.

The idea that we may have to one day survive the death of a spouse can be a very distressing notion to come to terms with. After a period of grief for such a tremendous loss, a surviving wife, husband or partner must begin to rebuild his or her life on their own.

If the death is unforeseen or the result of an accident, the shock also contributes to this time of pain and loneliness and if the deceased has died ‘intestate’, (without having made a Will) further distress is often caused by the confusion and uncertainty of the survivor’s future financial security.

Last week, the Ministry of Justice announced its plans to increase levels of ‘Statutory Legacy’ so that spouses and civil partners receive more money if their loved ones die without leaving a Will.

Since they have not been changed since 1993, the Government has acted after concerns that the levels of the statutory legacy, currently set at £125,000 (where the deceased leaves a surviving spouse or civil partner and children,) and £200,000 (where the deceased leaves a surviving spouse or civil partner and parents or siblings, but no children,) were seen by many as far too low.

I don’t know if you have heard, but the country is going through some economic turbulence at the moment. Mortgages, interest rates, food prices and fuel (not to mention column inches, panic and anxiety) are all on the rise and often to be found in the same breath of TV presenters and journalists recycling the same horror stories of the present, imminent or future (depending on who you listen to) ‘Credit Crunch.’

Alright, I am being flippant and as the Senior Partner of a law firm that employs over 140 staff in the area, a solicitor to a great number of personal clients who I have looked after for many years, a husband and a father I am as concerned about the future economic climate as anyone else, but I am determined to keep a calm, rational mind when evaluating the situation.

Whilst it may appear to members of the general public that they are being constantly being reminded by individuals such as myself and campaigns from the law firms we represent of the importance of making a Will, recent statistics show that a large percentage of the population have made no such legal provision for their finances after they die.

When I sat down to write this column I began to think what I could say that other people may not have done and would highlight the real need there is for people to make a Will. Whilst I personally am a specialist in Wills and Probate, we have a litigation department here at Eric Robinson Solicitors and some of our biggest cases have been as a result of inadequate provision of an individual’s assets after they have passed away.

In one case, an elderly lady died without having made any Will at all. Though her house was subsequently bestowed upon her next of kin, she had other relatives living in it at the time of her passing. Though this was not a permanent arrangement, they refused to move out of the property and the beneficiaries have spent a fortune following the legal process to have them removed so they can sell the property and distribute the proceeds.

At the start of the year, I wrote an article for the Daily Echo’s Financial Page about Lifetime Trusts. Since it was the first I had written, I had no idea that I would receive such a huge response from readers seeking more information or further clarification. People were either contacting or coming to see me with the article literally in their hands, so since it obviously provided serious ‘food for thought’, I thought it would be worth revisiting the subject in light of recent concerns over the future of our economy.

The people who have come to see me about Lifetime Trusts have done so because they want to ensure that an estate they intend to leave in a Will cares for a remaining spouse during their life and is then passed on for the benefit of their children.

Making a Will is a highly emotive subject, but the main reason people do one is to ensure that their assets and estate are passed on to their loved ones. Whilst effective tax planning ensures that beneficiaries receive the maximum the law allows, in the current climate that is not always enough to guarantee they receive what was intended.

Now more than ever large commercial organisations often assume that they are in a position to dictate how we run our lives. How many times have you had to take a whole afternoon, if not an entire day as holiday from work because a store cannot give you a more specific time when your washing machine is to be delivered? And then they don’t turn up!

Personally, I find it infuriating when I am expected to give time, effort or suffer sheer inconvenience from companies that build their reputations on putting their customers first and then fail to keep their promises.

Through my work as a solicitor I have realised that these big name brands are often unable to provide true customer service due to the size of their organisations. Confusing bureaucracy often means that they are unable to respond to their customers’ needs.

Let’s take my most recent example. A local man wished to develop a property he owned. He wanted to install a lift in the building and in order for it to be approved with a safety certificate he needed to fit an emergency telephone inside.

It is a common belief that the three most stressful things that a person can face during his or her lifetime is divorce, death and moving house, but what is less well known is how easily all these difficult situations can impact on each other and cause havoc to financial affairs.

The first time I encountered an example of this was when, many years ago, I was acting for a woman whose husband had initiated divorce proceedings. The divorce petition had been issued and the process was moving along when, suddenly, the soon-to-be ex-husband passed away.

It transpired that the gentleman in question had not made any changes to his Will since he was first married and consequently his entire estate and fortune was received by his wife. The decree absolute had not been issued, the couple were still technically married and so the wishes expressed in the Will had to be honoured as a legally-binding document.

The Government’s plans to expand the prison service by creating new buildings to house offenders have been the source of much public discussion and debate. In my view, this initiative is similar to the adding of an extra lane to a busy motorway - it doesn’t address the issue of traffic and offers only a short term solution before demand increases and the congestion returns.

From my experience working in criminal law and the courts, I support those who demand a review of the legal process, sentencing guidelines and the power of the courts. There is an increasingly urgent need re-examine how custodial punishments are used and introduce restriction and uniformity to how courts issue them.

Please don’t mistake my wishes for asking that offenders ‘get off lightly’ or noone should ever be incarcerated, but I believe that prison is supposed to be a last resort - the ultimate punishment - that protects the public (and sometimes the person themselves) from the threat of a dangerous individual.

There can be no doubt that recently divorced Heather Mills-McCartney is one of the least popular figures in the public eye at the moment. Many have passed comment about her behaviour, dress and motivation during her divorce from millionaire Paul McCartney, but it is her swipe at the futility of lawyers such as myself that, quite obviously, I find rather annoying.

In my experience most family lawyers look to reduce acrimony and try to settle cases well before a final hearing in the knowledge that in most cases parents need to communicate and co operate with each other for the benefit of their children.

I readily admit that I have a personal interest in Ms Mills-McCartney’s claims, but I also fail to understand how she can question the importance of legal representation in a divorce case, when she was supported by a team of legal experts for most of the proceedings. She only represented herself in Court, so to claim that the result of her highly publicised battle makes an entire profession redundant is highly misleading. The responsibility for ensuring case documentation was presented must have fallen on Sir Paul’s Solicitors

Experts are predicting that this year will see a great change in the legal profession due to the implications of the Legal Services Act which received Royal Assent at the end of last year. In this article, Graham Payne, Senior Partner of Eric Robinson Solicitors, explains why how this new legislation could jeopardize lawyers’ relationships with their clients.

The purpose of the Legal Services Act is to reform the way legal services in England and Wales are regulated and, according to the Ministry of Justice, ‘put the consumer interest at the heart of the regulatory framework.’ It allows law firms to create alternative business structures (for example lawyers working together with people from other sectors such as accountancy, insurance or property on an equal footing as company directors), invite outside investment and even float on the stock market . 

Dubbed by insiders as ‘Tesco Law’ because it will eventually allow supermarkets to sell legal services, the Legal Services Act sounds like a good strategy in an increasingly crowded legal marketplace, but I believe it fails to take into account a fundamental issue.

One of the major considerations for a lot of people when embarking on any kind of financial planning is providing for their children. Of course people’s main priority is to earn, save and manage money in order to look after their families, but in the unforeseen tragedy of a parent passing, it is essential that a Will be made, and made well, to take care of any children left behind.

Without a parental Will, all financial and welfare decisions for a child are made by the courts or according to strict statutory rules. Say, for example, a deceased father had his own company, he may have intended that his children benefit from the profits of continued business, inherit shares or even take over the business if they were old enough. Without a clear and legally binding Will, this legacy could easily be lost, especially if there are partners or senior colleagues in the business.

It is exactly the same principle for guardianship. If a mother specifically wanted her sister, aunt or friend to take care of her children in her absence, it is important she make her wishes known in a Will, otherwise the courts would award guardianship to someone they deem suitable, but whom the mother may have had issue with.

Graham Payne moved to Southampton as a teenager in 1968 in order to study law at the University. After he completed his course, he secured a position in a local practice where he did his articles, became fully qualified and was made Partner at the age of just 25 years

‘As soon as I arrived in Hampshire, I knew I wanted to stay,’ recalls Graham who is originally from Surrey. ‘It always felt like home and over the years I have not only raised my family, but also made some very good friends here.’

Graham moved to Eric Robinson Solicitors 30 years ago to progress the firm’s branch in Chandlers Ford. He arrived with just 10 files to be the only solicitor at the office and grew the practice to the busy office of eight fee earners plus support staff that it is today.

A Lifetime Trust is a way of ensuring that an estate left in a Will cares for a remaining spouse during their life and is then passed on for the benefit of the next generation.

Making a Will is a highly emotive subject, but when the vast majority of people do so it is to ensure that their assets and estate are passed on to their loved ones. Whilst effective tax planning ensures that beneficiaries receive the maximum the law allows, in the current climate that is not always enough to guarantee they receive what was intended.

Take, for example, the situation of a husband who has left a marital home to his wife, intending for her to pass it on to their children. If she eventually needs to take residency in a nursing home, the wife will be forced to sell the home in order to fund her care. It is only when she is down to a limited amount of personal funds (currently £21,500.00) that Social Services will assist with the payments, leaving a fraction of the original estate for the children.

There is no doubt that Paul Sams knows Southampton. Having diligently networked at every opportunity in the area for the past six years, he has become one of the most recognised faces of the local property market and now made his own move to join Eric Robinson Solicitors’ Residential Conveyancing Team.

Paul Sams studied law at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, completed his LPC at the University of Northumbria in Newcastle and stayed in the city for a year to work as a Personal Injury paralegal.

He moved South in September 2001 to join his then girlfriend, now wife, who he met at university and had returned to her home of Southampton. He completed his training course during three years at Lawcomm Solicitors and became Section Leader for the firm’s Residential Conveyancing Team.

For those of us old enough to remember quality goods and personal customer service from local shops, it is rather amusing to see the ‘marketing gurus’ of the next generation use the concept as if it were a brand new idea.

The latest craze our supermarkets are championing is the offer of local produce. Maybe they are trying to capture the minority who still buy from independent grocers, butchers and bakers, or maybe we are beginning to recognise the better quality of produce created and sold locally.

Even though I work in a completely different field as a conveyancer, the issue of buying locally is just a relevant. When you sell your house, a lot of the multi-national estate agents refer sellers on to ‘property shops’ to earn either reward or favour.

Being responsible for one of the largest conveyancing teams on the south coast and having over 37 years of experience in the profession, Paul Bakewell has followed the development of HIPS since the idea was first muted by a Conservative Government back in 1994.

‘There can be no doubt that the implementation of HIPs has attracted a great deal of interest and media coverage in the past few months,’ says Paul, Partner of Eric Robinson Solicitors. ‘Though it has caused some unnecessary anxiety, I believe the HIP pack is a very worthwhile initiative. At a time when there is a great concern over the environment and global warming, energy assessments will become an increasingly important aspect of buying and selling property.’

Paul’s confidence in HIPs was clearly demonstrated when he decided Eric Robinson Solicitors should take part in the Government’s ‘Early Adoption Scheme’ that was pioneered last year in Southampton as one of only eight cities in the UK.

‘Being a part of this scheme early on was the ultimate ‘win, win’ scenario,’ explains Paul. ‘The Government got to see the process in action and we were able to both plan and gain the experience we needed for when HIPs become compulsory in August.’

Solicitors who specialise in Personal Injury are welcoming findings from a national survey that not only challenge the stereotypical perception of the work they do, but also highlight real dangers with the future of the profession.

The Law Society’s Strategic Research Unit has announced the results of a survey it conducted into the experiences of 1,200 injury victims and the value they placed on the legal advice and representation they received.

While 83% of respondents said they felt it was very important that they received legal advice on their case and well over half were sure the compensation they received was greater with the help of a solicitor, it wasn’t all good news for some law firms.

The overwhelming majority of cases (95%) had used the solicitor they were referred to by their insurance or claims company, leaving a diminutive amount of clients that sought legal advice based on personal recommendation or previous experience.

There are constant campaigns from law firms highlighting the importance of making a Will. Though I have colleagues who specialise in Wills and Probate, I am a litigation lawyer whose recent big cases have been as a result of inadequate provision of an individual’s assets after they have passed away.

In one case, an elderly lady died without having made any Will at all. Though her house was subsequently bestowed upon her next of kin, she had other relatives living in it at the time of her passing. Though this was not a permanent arrangement, they refused to move out of the property and the beneficiaries have spent a fortune following the legal process to have them removed so they can sell the property and distribute the proceeds.

In winter, dark mornings and nights coupled with the recent cold does mean that this is the time of year both drivers and pedestrians are at a greater risk from accident and injury.

As a personal injury specialist, I have noticed a sizeable change in the way my work is perceived by the public. People often make jokes, use names such as ‘Ambulance-Chasers’ or simply have a look in their eye that shows they have made a clear judgement on what I do for a living.

This perception has arisen mainly due to the sudden and rapid growth of claims companies, employing unqualified staff, who advertise in such a way as to appear to act as cash machines by turning every accident into a case for financial compensation whether warranted or not. This has led to the wide use of the phrase “claims culture” but the reality is that the number of claims made is down on previous years. Whilst there may be “bogus” cases, this should not stop injured persons seeking proper redress.