Latest News

The impact Climate Change can have on your move

As the purchase of a home is most likely going to be the largest and most valuable transaction we will make in our lifetime, buyers are increasingly looking to  solicitors to help safeguard that investment.  In April 2023 The Law Society of England...

The Renters (Reform) Bill - Where are we now?

When the Renters (Reform) Bill was first announced in 2022, the Conservative Government were seeking to follow through with their manifesto promise to finally remove the right of Landlords to serve a section 21 (no fault) notices on tenants.  However,...

Family mediation week - 22 January 2024

Monday 22 January 2024 starts the beginning of Family Mediation Week.  So, what is family mediation week?  The Family Mediation Council uses this week each year to raise awareness of family mediation and of the benefits it can bring to separating...

Buying Your First Home

Buying a home for the first time can be an exciting and nerve-wracking experience. I recently bought my first property and can totally appreciate the feeling. As a first-time buyer it is likely that you are not familiar with the conveyancing process, but...

Protecting your digital legacy when we die

Within our modern world, our online presence is stronger than ever. It is becoming increasingly apparent that we must consider how our digital assets are dealt with after we pass away. Our online profiles include online documents, photos, social media...

Things to consider when selling a property at auction

If your property is unusual, it requires a lot of renovation work, is of a mixed quality, requires planning consent for its use, or simply you wish to avoid the traditional route, you may wish to sell it  at auction. What are the advantages: The...

The Benefits of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)

Whilst mediums of media from film and television to newspapers and novels tend to glorify Court proceedings as the definitive method of obtaining justice, the whole story is not being accurately told. Undergoing Court proceedings are expensive (often to the...

A night to remember - Walking for Kingston Hospital

 A Night to Remember… it certainly  was! On the 9th September I took part in a 13 mile night charity walk to raise money for Kingston Hospital. It was also the 75th anniversary of our wonderful NHS and at Pearson Hards we felt it important...

Understanding Lasting Powers of Attorney

There are many misunderstandings and misconceptions about Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA), therefore we hope this provides a useful overview of what an LPA does, how it works and how to request one. 5 reasons to have an LPA:- One in three people aged...

Our new team member - Claire-Louise Smith

Claire-Louise Smith – Blog I had always wanted to pursue a career in law ever since I was a child. I always had a perception of fairness and making sure that everyone was treated the same. However, a last minute choice of a Business Commerce degree...

Is this the end of "no fault evictions"?

Today the Government announced that the long-promised “no fault” evictions will finally be placed before Parliament as part of an overhaul of the private rental sector in England.  They had initially promised this within their manifesto...

NEW BUSINESS LEASES - 10 Points for Landlords and Tenants.

Often everyone is in a hurry to agree and complete a lease but Donald Morrison, Partner of the Commercial Property team says, proceed in haste, repent at leisure. Some things to consider before you agree Heads of Terms and commit: 1.  Renewable or...

Changes to Financial Settlements upon Divorce?

On 6 April 2022, the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 finally revised the divorce process and introduced a ‘no fault’ divorce regime. These changes have received a lot of praise and positive feedback in enabling parties to separate in...

Are you moving?

We certainly live in interesting and challenging times, and you would be forgiven for wondering what we will be hit with next.  From the cost of living crisis to public sector strikes, every day brings fresh challenges for us all as we navigate a path...

Mediation - A summary of what to expect

By Claire Darby, Partner in Dispute Resolution In the summer of 2022, I attended 4 mediations for clients.  Two of them were for contested probate matters and two others were debt claims.  All the mediations ended in a settlement and ultimately...

10 reasons people do not make Wills.

Most adults know that they should have a Will in place, however the thought is often put off when life gets in the way. Will Aid conducted a research revealing that 53% of adults in the UK do not have a Will. But why do people put off making a Will? Here are...

The Chancellor's mini budget and the effect on the housing market?

The housing market, including estate agents and conveyancers have long been wondering how long the recent housing bubble could last.  In 2020 when the Chancellor at the time, Rishi Sunak, announced a stamp duty holiday for all properties up to...

Contentious probate - A word of warning when considering gifts

When people reach a certain age, many will start to evaluate their personal finances and how they should use the money they have accumulated during their lifetime.  This may be for the purposes of limiting tax that they have to pay on their estate and...

The Right Trust at the Right Time

You may have heard about “Family Asset Protection Trusts” and think they sound promising for protecting your home and hard-earned savings from various evils. At least, that is what the people who market them warn you about. But many of the...

Case Study - Landlord and Tenant

When a sub-tenant wants to leave but they do not want to help get vacant possession, what do I do as a landlord? As a landlord, you may have rented out your property to an individual or company on the basis that they will then sub-let the property to...

No Fault Divorce

Change is in the air/ End of the blame game? From 6 th April 2022 separating couples will not need to blame each other for the breakdown of their relationship. Currently, divorcing couples must be able to identify issues that have triggered the...

A night at the awards - by Claire Darby

On Thursday 17 March 2022, Hatice, Donald, Emma and I all attended the Kingston Borough Business Awards.  It was titled the 2021 awards as it was cancelled from last year, like many things, due to Covid.  The night was held at the All Saints Church...

EU's 5th Money Laundering Directive

The EU's 5h Money Laundering Directive and how this affects you Over recent years the leaders of the major Western nations have made efforts to frustrate the flow of money representing the proceeds of crime, such as drug smuggling or fraud, or which...

Who do you trust?

In simple terms, a trust is an arrangement where people (trustees) are trusted to look after property for beneficiaries who cannot be trusted with the trust property – e.g. because they are too young or vulnerable or because the trust property is...

The Chancellors Summer Announcement - The Headlines

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has today made his long awaited summer announcement setting out his proposals to getting the economy back on its feet after the last few months of lockdown.  Here is our summary of the main points: Stamp Duty holiday The...