Jointly owned properties
Where a property is jointly owned, the simple answer is no. The legal position is that both parties’ have an equal right to access and to occupy the property. Even if only one party is paying the mortgage or the other party has made no contribution at all, you cannot change the locks without the agreement of the co-owner or an order of the court.
In certain circumstances, the Court may be prepared to grant an Occupation Order to one party to prevent the other party from returning to the property where there has been domestic violence or threats of harm. The threshold is fairly high and in some cases where the evidence is insufficient an order can be made for the parties’ to occupy certain parts of the property to the exclusion of one another.
For jointly owned properties, advice should be sought as to whether the property is owned as joint tenants or tenants in common.
Properties held in one name
In contrast to this, where a property is owned in one person’s name only and the relationship breaks down, the owner of the property is entitled to change the locks.
In certain circumstances, an Occupation Order can be secured through the courts for the person without legal title to the property, particularly if they would be made homeless by virtue of the locks being changed and/or have a beneficial interest in the property. The Osborne Park mobile lockout service reminds us in their recent posts that the costs associated with these procedures generally fall on the perpetrator. Regardless of their homeless situation.
In the case of a marriage breaking down, the person without legal title can seek to register a home rights notice against the property provided it has been occupied as the matrimonial home. This is advisable for protection as it prevents disposal of the property without notice before the financial matters have been resolved.
For unmarried couples, it may be possible to secure a unilateral notice or other restriction against the property depending on the circumstances to prevent a disposal taking place before an agreement has been reached.
If I own a property jointly can I leave my share of the property to anyone I want under my will?
A jointly owned property can be held by the owners as either as joint tenants or tenants in common.
Tenants in Common
If you own a property as tenants in common, it means that although you jointly own the property, it is owed in divided shares. In contrast to joint tenants you can leave your share of the property to anyone you like under your will.
Joint Tenants
If you jointly own a property as joint tenants it means that on the death of either of the owners, the property will pass to the survivor regardless of the terms of the deceased’s will.
If you wish to control the devolution of your interest in the property on death, you can sever the tenancy of the property so that you can become tenants in common. This is a simple and inexpensive process.
Following the breakdown of any relationship, severance should be considered. However, one should be warned that severance is a double edged sword.
We have family law specialists available who can provide legal advice and dispute resolution services, including family mediation and collaborative law. If you would wish to speak with one of our Family Law Specialists, please do contact our friendly team.
It is common knowledge that there is a potential inheritance tax liability for gifts you have made in the last 7 years before your death. Gifts include cash, property, shares, vehicles, household and personal belongings. It also includes any monies lost when you sell something for less than it is worth.
There is no inheritance tax due on any gifts you give if you live for seven years after giving them (unless the gift is part of a trust). This is known as the seven-year rule.
If you die within seven years of making a gift and there is Inheritance Tax to pay (only if the gifts are in excess of your £325,000 allowance), the amount of tax due depends on when you gave it. The inheritance tax rate is 40% for gifts made in the three years before your death and for those made three to seven years before your death, they are taxed as per below on a sliding scale known as ‘taper relief’.
Years between gift and death
Rate of tax on the gift
| Years between gift and death |
Rate of tax on the gift |
| 3 to 4 years |
32% |
| 4 to 5 years |
24% |
| 5 to 6 years |
16% |
| 6 to 7 years |
8% |
| 7 or more |
0% |
Please note that any gifts you make that you are still benefiting from such as continuing to live in the house you have gifted, will form part of your estate for inheritance tax purposes.
1. Spouse or Civil Partner Exemption
Any gifts made between spouses or civil partners, provided they live in the UK permanently, are exempt.
2. Charity and Political Party Exemption
There is no inheritance on any gifts made to charities and political parties.
3. Small Gift Allowance
You may make gifts of up to £250 to as many recipients as you wish in each tax year without needing to keep records. If any individual receives more than £250, the whole value of the gift must be taken into account. Additionally, any Christmas or birthday gifts you give from your regular income are exempt from Inheritance Tax.
4. Wedding or Civil Partnership Allowance
You can give £5,000 to a child and £2,500 to a grandchild or great-grandchild and £1,000 to anyone else who is getting married or entering a civil partnership in each tax year.
5. Annual Allowance
You have an allowance of £3,000. Gifts to one, or more, recipients to a total value of £3,000 will not reduce your Inheritance Tax allowance or be subject to the seven-year rule. For example, you could give one child/person £3,000, or you could give your two children/people £1,500 each and this will not count towards your inheritance tax allowance.
If you have not used your allowance for the previous tax year you can carry forward your unused allowance for one year only. Any unused allowance not carried forward will be lost. Therefore, if you have not used an allowance for the last two tax years you can gift a total of £6,000 away up until the end of the tax year (5th April). Then on 6th April you can also use your new allowance of £3,000.
If the value of all gifts in a tax year exceeds the annual allowance, the excess will reduce the amount of tax-free allowance available for your estate.
6. Gift out of Surplus Income
If you have a good pension and investment income and do not spend all of your income which means that it is just accumulating as capital, then you can also gift this income in addition to your annual allowance. You will need to keep careful records of your outgoings to show your surplus and the amount of surplus that is gifted.
It is important to keep a detailed record of the gifts you have made (what you gave, how much you gave/the value, when you gave and to whom) so that the appropriate exemptions/allowances can be used to minimise any inheritance tax liability on your death.
On Friday 22nd September 2023, we further strengthened our position as the leading law firm in Sussex when we merged with Pure Employment Law in Chichester.
The union made Pure Employment Law part of the Mayo Wynne Baxter brand and added a new office hub in Chichester, The new location will also create more than a dozen jobs in the local area.
Acting for both employers and employees, Pure Employment Law was established in 2010 by employment law specialists Nicola Brown and Peter Stevens, who have more than 50 years of combined experience, having both previously worked at a large regional firm before setting up on their own.
The merger has further bolstered our existing employment offering and the new Chichester hub will expand our reach across Sussex, providing local clients with access to our 200-strong team of experts.
Nicola, who joined Mayo Wynne Baxter as a partner, said: “Our client base has grown massively in the past 13 years and we felt ready for the next step, so we began looking for a partner that could provide us with the infrastructure to grow. We’re delighted to become part of a firm that has such a great reputation in Sussex and that has shown its commitment to building a full-service offering for clients in Chichester.”
We have confirmed that we are now looking to recruit at least 12 additional legal professionals in the area, to support local clients with a range of legal services.
The merger follows shortly after our union with Lawson Lewis Blakers in Eastbourne in May.
Dean Orgill, chief executive partner at Mayo Wynne Baxter, said: “We’re thrilled to have announced two key mergers, in relatively quick succession, that have not only brought in incredible expertise to our firm but also expanded our reach, taking us to nine locations across the region.
“We’ve had a landmark year for growth already but won’t be resting on our laurels. Our focus for the immediate future is recruitment and building a strong team.”
Martin Williams, head of employment at Mayo Wynne Baxter, said: “Nicola and Peter bring with them bags of expertise and business acumen, so we’re delighted that they are joining our growing employment team. We are glad to be able to offer their existing client base a range of legal services and their team with excellent training and career development opportunities.”
There are no planned redundancies as a result of the merger. Mayo Wynne Baxter is proactively recruiting in Chichester and the wider Sussex area.
On Saturday 1st April 2023, we further strengthened our position as the leading law firm in Sussex when we merged with long-established firm, Lawson Lewis Blakers.
There are such great synergies between our two firms that a merger made perfect sense.
Lawson Lewis Blakers has always been known as a modern progressive law firm that can trace its roots in Sussex back almost 200 years.
Lawson Lewis & Co was established in Eastbourne in 1875 and grew organically and by merger, establishing an office in Peacehaven in 2000, and absorbing Lewes firm Blaker Son & Young (established approximately 1830) in 2012 to become Lawson Lewis Blakers.
The merger has seen Lawson Lewis Blakers now become part of the Mayo Wynne Baxter brand, taking the Mayo Wynne Baxter team to more than 220 people. Their Peacehaven office is now our eighth office in the Sussex area, and staff from their Lewes and Eastbourne offices have moved into our existing buildings in those towns.
Jeremy Sogno, director at Lawson Lewis Blakers, said when we announced the merger: “We were looking for a larger organisation that shared our values and could offer greater growth opportunities for our talented and ambitious team, as well as providing additional services and expertise to our valued clients; Mayo Wynne Baxter more than fits these criteria, and we are excited about joining forces and continuing our legacy within the local area.”
There were no redundancies as a result of the merger and Lawson Lewis Blakers’ clients can expect the same high levels of exceptional service from our friendly team. As part of MWB, clients will have access to a greater range of services and specialists in more areas of law.
They will also be offered our Satisfaction Guarantee whereby if they are not completely satisfied with the service received, they can deduct up to a maximum of 20% off their fee. No quibble.
Clients who had documents held for them by LLB can rest assured that they remain safe with us. Should you wish to retrieve your Will or Deeds then please click here.
We started this year with some exciting news. We joined Ampa – the UK’s leading group of legal and professional services companies. As a result of this merger, our clients now have access to more than 900 experts across the group. These include new service areas such as planning, cyber security, data protection and risk management, to name a few.
It has always been important to us that we continue to innovate and find ways to better serve our growing client base. Over the last decade, this has included mergers with other firms and developing technological solutions like our LawEasier service.
The move to join Ampa supports our shared plans for growth and increases our service offering for clients across the South East. Ampa is a group of distinct and respected brands with complementary specialist areas, talented experts, and a united goal to fulfil our clients’ needs and their growth ambitions.
Together, we can now provide you with market-leading support on a vast range of varied and complex issues—all in one place. Wherever, whenever you need us.
While we will retain our distinctive brand and continue to operate as a separate LLP, joining Ampa means that we can also speed up our expansion plans. We are now looking to recruit talented people and teams across Sussex, Surrey, and Kent as Ampa’s regional anchor brand in the South East.
Ampa shares our values of collaboration, integrity and providing exceptional service. We’re delighted to join the likes of Shakespeare Martineau, Marrons Planning, Lime Solicitors, Corclaim, and CSS Assure, in the group.
“We’re excited to be taking this next step in our firm’s evolution and look forward to building on our services for our clients and communities. Joining forces is a very positive move for each of us.” Dean Orgill, Chief Executive Partner at MWB.
Our identity as Mayo Wynne Baxter will remain. We are proud of our established reputation, and it is one of the things that made us attractive to Ampa. A crucial part of our identity is our people and, as we are looking to expand the firm not to reduce it, there are no plans for any redundancies.
Ampa’s origins are in the Midlands through Shakespeare Martineau – a well-respected and substantial law firm with ten offices including London, Birmingham and Glasgow.
Sarah Walker-Smith, Group CEO at Ampa, said: “A key benefit of our group is shared access to greater support for the benefit of our clients, whether that be from other legal professionals across different brands or our combined business operations capabilities. Alongside bigger buying power and significant opportunities to collaborate on projects, we will deliver enhanced benefits for our people and clients in life and business.
“Each brand in our group is empowered to deliver on its growth ambitions and retaining autonomy whilst collaborating with each other when it makes sense to do so for the greater good.
“Mayo Wynne Baxter has a unique geography, local market affinity, excellent client relationships, strong employer brand and a great reputation – which is why it is so important that it maintains its brand and market positions. It has been great to meet and now go into partnership with a similarly progressive business and like-minded people to help us drive the Ampa vision.”
The transition to the group is expected to be completed by 1st May 2022 and the merger will take Ampa to a turnover above £100m for 2022/23 and a group of more than 1,100 people immediately.
This is good news for MWB, but more importantly, it is good news for our clients.
On Tuesday 7th May 2019, we further strengthened our position as the leading law firm in Sussex when we merged with established Crawley law firm, Russell & Co.
This merger is the fourth that we have completed in recent years having previously added offices in East Grinstead, Storrington and Pulborough.
The completion of this deal means that Mayo Wynne Baxter now has eight offices in Sussex including those long-established bases in Eastbourne, Seaford, Lewes and Brighton.
Russell & Co has been serving the Crawley community since 1987 and share the Mayo Wynne Baxter brand values of delivering exceptional service through outstanding people. Partners Alison Kinnersley and Grant Parker and their team bring a wealth of experience to Mayo Wynne Baxter.
Our Chief Executive, Chris Randall, said: “We are delighted to announce the merger with Russell & Co. This is a great move for both firms and means that clients in Crawley will have access to a much broader range of legal services.
“This central Crawley office in Queens Square extends our reach into West Sussex and is a further step towards Mayo Wynne Baxter being the dominant law firm in the county.”
The announcement of this merger follows previous news that the firm has invested heavily in communications and information technology to further improve its existing industry-leading client service delivery. This is to be further enhanced by the introduction of a secure web portal to allow clients to have direct 24-hour access to their matter
The new Crawley office will benefit from these enhancements and Crawley clients will be offered the firm’s innovative Satisfaction Guarantee whereby if they are not completely satisfied with the service received, they can deduct up to a maximum of 20% off their fee. No quibble.
Mayo Wynne Baxter has had a long-standing association with Crawley and has been a main sponsor at Crawley Town FC since 2013 and operated an office at The Beehive in Gatwick. They are Diamond listed by the Gatwick Diamond Business Association and are previous winners of the Gatwick Diamond Business Award for Corporate Responsibility.