The Neasden temple was built and paid for by its community, and that community now faces a question every Gujarati family in Brent eventually meets: how to pass on a house in Kingsbury or Wembley, a business in Park Royal and perhaps a plot of land in Gujarat or Nairobi, between children on three continents, without a tax bill or a quarrel. Will solicitors in Brent answer it with wills that deal with each country's assets, declarations of trust that record who paid for what, and advice on the inheritance tax that a Brent semi can now trigger on its own.
The Irish families of Kilburn and Cricklewood bring a different version of the same problem, often involving a share of land at home governed by a different legal system. Caribbean, Somali and Polish families ask about wills that will be recognised abroad. And because so many people in Brent rent rather than own, a large part of the work is for people who assume they have nothing to leave: a will still decides who receives savings, a pension lump sum, a car and the right to deal with everything, and it is the only way an unmarried partner inherits, since the intestacy rules give them nothing.
Lasting powers of attorney for money and for health let a trusted person act if capacity is lost; without one, relatives face the Court of Protection. After a death, Brent solicitors obtain the grant of probate, settle tax with HMRC and distribute the estate, including to beneficiaries overseas, and remind executors that they are personally liable for mistakes.
Fixed fees apply to most wills and powers of attorney; probate may be fixed, hourly or a percentage.
Will and probate firms serving Brent appear below, verified firms first. Our explainers on wills, trusts and probate, the cost of a will, the cost of probate and lasting powers of attorney are a good start; the general will solicitors page describes the service.
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