International estate planning and successions

We offer high-quality specialist advice to UK citizens with overseas assets and families and to non-UK citizens with UK assets.

We advise on many cross-border legal matters including:

• international estate and tax planning
• cross-border wills, matrimonial property regimes and inheritance contracts
• administering international estates
• obtaining UK Grants of Probate for persons who die outside the UK
• care and protection of the elderly and their assets across national borders

Estate and tax planning

International and cross-border estate and tax planning can be highly complex. We help guide you through the key issues. We have developed considerable expertise in understanding and advising on succession and tax matters for international clients..

Cross-border wills, matrimonial property regimes and inheritance contracts

We regularly advise on, and draft wills covering, international assets. We also advise and draft wills for people living abroad who want a will for their UK assets. In both cases we help you to understand the interaction of the relevant succession and tax regimes, and consider the effect of any matrimonial property regimes or inheritance contracts that may apply.

Administering international estates

We regularly advise on the administration of estates with international assets. We analyse which succession rules will apply to the property involved and what the effect of any will or wills might be. The interaction of inheritance or succession tax in the countries needs careful consideration.

Obtaining UK Grants of Probate

The process of obtaining a Grant of Probate for a person dying outside the UK can be complicated and upsetting. We have significant expertise in obtaining UK Grants of Probate for people who lived outside the UK, and also in re-sealing Grants obtained in other jurisdictions. We can also advise on the possible admissibility of non-UK equivalents, such as European Certificates of Succession to make the process more straightforward.

Care and protection of the elderly or vulnerable

Issues surrounding care and protection of the elderly or vulnerable in cross-border situations can become very complex and require particular compassion and sensitivity. Members of the team are experts in this field and often work together with our family and children teams to provide co-ordinated advice.

Our team

We have considerable experience dealing with cross-border matters and we often work closely with our colleagues who are French qualified lawyers. We are the sole London members of the Lexunion and Legus international legal networks which give us access to a network of expert lawyers in other jurisdictions who we can call on to assist where appropriate.