A couple in Forest Hill buy a flat together, have two children and never get round to marrying. One of them dies without a will. If the flat was held as joint tenants it passes to the survivor automatically; if it was held as tenants in common, or if the savings and the pension were in the deceased's sole name, the intestacy rules give the surviving partner nothing at all, because the law does not recognise an unmarried partner, however long the relationship. The children inherit instead, and the survivor may have to bring a claim against their own children to stay in the home. Will solicitors in Lewisham tell this story often, because the borough has a great many couples in exactly this position.
A will fixes it in an afternoon: it names the partner, appoints guardians for the children, chooses executors and, for a house in Brockley, Blackheath or Lee that has risen far beyond what was paid for it, plans around inheritance tax. Families with property in Jamaica, Nigeria, Vietnam or elsewhere, of whom Lewisham has many, usually need a will for each country, drafted so that neither revokes the other.
The older borough has different needs. On the interwar estates at Downham and Bellingham and in the quieter streets of Grove Park, the pressing documents are lasting powers of attorney for finance and for health, made while capacity remains, and advice on care fees. When someone dies, the same firms obtain probate, settle tax with HMRC and distribute the estate, a job executors can take on themselves but are personally liable for.
Wills and LPAs are generally fixed-fee; ask how probate is charged, since firms differ.
Will and probate firms serving Lewisham are listed below, verified first. Read wills, trusts and probate explained, what a lasting power of attorney is, how much a will costs and how much probate costs, or the general will solicitors page.
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