Solicitors for the Elderly: How our Local Solicitors for Wills help our older clients
Posted on 25th February 2020
As your local solicitors for Wills, we often get asked how we can help our elderly and vulnerable clients to feel more comfortable when they are instructing us in their matter, such as to draft their Will, or prepare Lasting Powers of Attorney on their behalf.
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Arranging the Initial Meeting
To start off, when we are discussing the initial appointment with our elderly and vulnerable clients (or with their nominated ‘spokesperson’), we like to find out where they would be most comfortable meeting: is it easier for them to come into their local office, or would they prefer that we visit them at their house, or the house of their relative, to make them feel more at ease when providing us with their initial instructions? If they decide that their home, or that of a friend/relative, would be better for them, our team will discuss a mutually convenient time and place for the chat to take place.
The Initial Meeting – At Home or in Your Local Office
When we first arrive at the house, or when our Wills clients arrive at the office, we will introduce ourselves, and have a little chat with them about general things (it sounds like a cliché, but topics like the weather, our team’s love of dogs and all furry animals, and the journey – either the client’s or our Wills solicitors in Longridge’s – are all popular discussions!). We like to get to know a little about our clients and let them know about us, so that they we’re not at all scary or intimidating; we’re just normal people, who happen to have expert legal knowledge.
Once we’ve got the informal-formalities out of the way, we get down to business. We like to have a chat with you about your matter; we’ll explain all of the ‘legal jargon’ using simple, plain English, and then we’ll ask you for your details, such as who you are appointing as your Attorneys or your Executors, and your name, date of birth and address (unless we’ve already got this information from you).
Any questions?
We like to give our clients, especially those who are vulnerable or elderly, plenty of time to ask any questions and process the information that we’re giving to them; after all, we understand that it can be a lot to take in, and we would never want you to feel like we’d rushed you through it!
Can my family or friends come to the appointment with me?
A common question that we’re asked is whether our clients can bring their family or friends to their appointment. Well, whilst we are happy for someone to come with you, or be present when we visit you, we will need to speak to you on your own, to make sure that you are fully happy with your instructions and that you can have a chat, free of any pressure from family or friends (we like to think that this would never happen, and certainly most of our clients would never experience such a thing, however, sadly, in some cases it does happen).
Once we have all the information that we need, we’ll say our goodbyes, get one more cuddle in with your lovely pets, and we’ll say goodbye.
What happens after our appointment?
Shortly after our initial meeting, you should receive our initial paperwork to your designated correspondence address. For most of our Wills and Lasting Power of Attorney clients, this will be their home address, however some people prefer for their paperwork to get sent ‘care of’ another address, such as if the post is unreliable at your property, or if you go away a lot.
The Legal Stuff
We will ask you to sign and return one copy of the paperwork, to confirm your agreement to our terms of business and your instructions. Once this has been received, we’ll get on with the legal work: we’ll either prepare and send you a draft Will for your approval, or we’ll prepare your Lasting Powers of Attorney.
Second-and-last Appointment
We can then arrange another appointment with you to sign the final documents. This is, usually, the last time that we’ll need to meet face-to-face, as we can deal with the rest of matters via post, email or over-the-phone – whatever form of communication is easiest for you.
Legal Jargon
At this stage, or indeed, at any stage of your matter, if you have any questions, or if there is any ‘legal jargon’ that you don’t understand, or want to discuss in more detail, just let us know. We’re happy to spend as much time going through matters as you need.
Finalising Matters
Once your matter is finalised, you’ll receive our final letter, confirming our policy on the storage of closed files, along with two 10% off vouchers, which you can use yourself on another matter, or pass onto your friends and family (along with a recommendation for them to contact our team of Wills Solicitors in Preston and sort out their own Wills – it’s important for everyone to have a valid Will in place, not just for those who are elderly or vulnerable!
How do I get started?
So, if you want to get your affairs in order today, contact our team at your local office (our team cover Lancaster, and Preston, as well as all across England and Wales), or email wills@mglegal.co.uk.
MG Legal – Your Local Solicitors
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