Welcome to the Winter 2023 Edition of Viewpoint
A new year brings with it a time for reflection with equal amounts of uncertainty as to what the turning seasons will bring.
In the legal world, we closely follow announcements and judgments that will have an impact on our personal legal affairs.
One came not too long ago, when the Government announced it has no plans to reform the laws relating to cohabiting couples in England and Wales, despite support from MPs and professional bodies.
There are still worrying delays at The Office of the Public Guardian who recently announced that it can take up to 20 weeks for Lasting Powers of Attorney to be registered, advising that people should use 'short-term' options for health, welfare and financial decisions.
Onto matters close to home, we ran another successful workshop before Christmas on the subject of appointing an Attorney which I was pleased to see many of you attended. In this edition you will find details of our workshops that will take place in the coming months alongside an article regarding lifetime giving and the update following the judgment in the case of Guest v Guest.
You will also find enclosed with this edition a feedback questionnaire - we value your thoughts on how Viewpoint can be improved and there is a luxury hamper up for grabs for those of you that return a completed form.
Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter - on behalf of all the teams here, I send you our good wishes for the year ahead.