Expertise

Sarah is a solicitor in the Private Client team and advises on both contentious and non-contentious matters.

Sarah provides advice to clients on a full range of Private Client matters including preparing tax efficient Wills for clients, advising on estate and succession planning in order to protect wealth for the next generation and administering high value and complex estates and trusts on behalf of executors and trustees. Sarah advises on lifetime and post-death tax planning particularly in relation to Inheritance Tax and Capital Gains Tax, and advises on and prepares Lasting Powers of Attorney.

Sarah’s contentious private client expertise includes advising on claims relating to the removal of personal representatives of an estate and on issues regarding the validity of Wills including lack of knowledge and approval, and undue influence. Sarah also assists with applications to court to vary the terms of a trust and advises on Court of Protection matters.

Recent experience

• Part of a team advising the trustees of a large family trust containing assets in excess of £1 billion on all aspects of the trust administration.
• Providing estate planning advice for individuals with multi-jurisdictional estates including preparing Wills and lifetime trusts.
• Advising the family of a bankrupt individual in respect of capacity and considering ways in which the considerable surplus funds could be protected for the individual.
• Advising the executors of a complex and multi-million pound estate within which a large proportion of the estate passed to charity and liaising with HMRC to maximise the Inheritance Tax reliefs for the estate.
• Advising on simultaneous applications to the Court of Protection for both an order appointing a deputy to manage the financial affairs of an individual who has lost capacity and an order appointing new trustees of the individual’s interest in a property in order that the property could be sold.
• Assisting with an application to court to vary the terms of a large family trust valued in excess of £100 million under the provisions of the Variation of Trusts Act 1958.
• Advising the beneficiaries of an estate in respect of a non-cooperative executor to include advice on an executor removal application.

Career History

Sarah joined Wedlake Bell as a trainee in 2016 and qualified into the Private Client team in 2018. She is a full member of STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners) having attained a distinction in the STEP Diploma in Trusts and Estates.

Sarah graduated from the University of Southampton where she read History and Politics. She then completed the Graduate Diploma in Law and Legal Practice Course at Kaplan Law School.

Publications

“Charitable Giving” – In Trust, 22 June 2021

“Managing a beneficiary: Steps to take” – Today’s Wills and Probate, 11 June 2021

“How families can get the wealth transfer right and avoid things getting messy” – Eprivateclient, 5 October 2020