Advice and information
Information leaflets relating to inheritance and succession, including trusts, making a will, power of attorney, cohabiting couples (UK) among others.
About Step
STEP explained
Gives an overview of the Society, its membership and activities.
About Trusts
Trusts explained
Gives an overview of how trusts work and what they are most commonly used for, and corrects some of the widespread misconceptions held about trusts.
Why make a trust
Why make a Trust
Provides a brief explanation of the benefit of making a trust, along with some frequently asked questions regarding trusts for members of the public.
About Wills
Why make a Will?
Provides a brief explanation of the importance of making a will.
About what to do when someone dies
What to do when someone dies
Provides a brief outline to guide you through the process of what to do when someone dies: the steps that must be taken, the information that must be gathered and the legal terms that may be encountered.
About powers of attorney
Why make a Lasting Power of Attorney?
Provides a brief explanation of a Lasting Power of Attorney, outlining the two different types and the main points to consider when creating an LPA for members of the public in England and Wales.
About being a personal representative (UK)
Executors and Personal Representatives
People often underestimate the huge responsibility and challenges of being a personal representative and the personal liability it brings if things go wrong. This article sets out a few common pitfalls personal representatives may fall into and should serve as a warning to anyone contemplating administering an estate without obtaining legal advice.
About cohabiting couples (UK)
Couples cohabiting
More than 3 million couples in the UK choose to cohabit, rather than marry or enter a civil partnership. If you are co-habiting, you do not have the same rights as a married couple; and contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as a ‘common-law marriage’.
The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners
The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) is the worldwide professional body which promotes high professional standards and education for its members.
Becoming a Full STEP Member is a benchmark many solicitors strive for: it is the top professional qualification for a Wills, Trusts and Probate solicitor. Full qualification allows a practitioner to demonstrate their knowledge, passion and commitment towards their specialist line of work.
The process to become STEP qualified is highly rigorous. Practitioners who are studying for the STEP Diploma must complete four modules – Administration of Trusts, Administration of Estates, Taxation of Trusts and Estates, and Trust and Estate Accounting.
After months of studying, which is mainly conducted independently in the practitioners own time, a three hour exam must be passed. Once all four exams have been passed, the practitioner, who must have at least two years’ experience in the profession, can then apply to become a Full Member.
What are the benefits?
The STEP Diploma in Trusts and Estates equips a solicitor with both an academic and professional qualification recognised throughout the industry. Full members are able to show a full knowledge of the most up-to-date issues impacting upon trusts and estates, providing assurance that the solicitor is both a trusted advisor and a highly qualified trust and estate practitioner.
The Highest Professional Standards
STEP members are expected to uphold the key professional and ethical standards as set out in the STEP Codes of Conduct. The Codes of Professional Conduct provide a clear set of principles for a member’s professional activity, giving each the understanding they need to deliver to the highest expectations.
For example, when creating a Trust in a Will, STEP members will abide by the Codes of Conduct and the STEP Standard Provisions of Best Practice.
What does this mean for the client? It means:
- They will receive the best advice,
- From a regulated expert,
- Given and written in the clearest manner to understand.
Being STEP qualified gives a solicitor the highest level of credibility and therefore an unrivalled edge over other solicitor and services out there. Dealing with a solicitor who is STEP qualified also gives the client the assurance that they are dealing with something who truly knows what they are doing so that problems do not occur further down the line.
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