legal & financial news inside view...inside view legal & financial news law firm new look...

inside viewLegal & Financial News

Law Firm

New LookFull details inside!

Need help or advice?Call us today on

0161 785 [email protected]

www.pearsonlegal.co.ukFor all your private, financial and business needs

Divorceand your Pension

Holidayfrom Hell

“We are excited to be expanding our Ashton services. Pearson’s have worked with generations of familiesin the Oldham and Saddleworth area and are pleased we can now offer a full legal service to a new

generation of people in Ashton.

“It’s great to be part of the changing face and development of the area,” said Partner John Pollitt.

The former Friendship Inn has been part of the redevelopment of St Petersfield and is now back to its former glory. Built in 1827 it was expanded to house the Schofield’s Brewery later taken over byRobinsons Family Brewery. It closed some years ago but has recently been restored.

“We are extremely proud of our new offices which are sympathetic to the building’s heritage whilstat the same time provide an up-to-date modern practice and we look forward to welcoming manynew clients,” added Mr Pollitt.

Need AdviceCall us today on0161 785 3500

A landmark building has a new lease of life with the expansion of Pearson Solicitors and Financial Advisers into new premisesin Henry Square, Old Street, Ashton, bringing high qualitylegal services to the developing St Petersfield area.

“This is a great way to encourage peopleto sort out their affairs and help aworthwhile charity at the same time,”said Partner Daniel Prince.

“If you die without making a Will itcan make things difficult for yourloved ones, by making a Will you canensure your estate is distributed in theway you have specified,” he added.

Many people have out of date Willsafter changing family circumstances,such as births, divorces and deaths,and it is important a Will is updated. A professionally drawn up Will can alsohelp avoid costly and emotional disputesin the future.

Some startling facts:• 1/3 of the population do not have a WILL• Everyone over the age of 18 who has

possessions can make a WILL• 23% of people think they are too poor

to have a WILL• 1 in 10 people have a will but have not

told anyone else about it• 1 in 8 people have not reviewed their

WILLS in 10 years

If you die and have made a Will your possessions are distributed the way youspecified. If you have no Will you die ‘intestate’ and your estate is distributedin accordance with the law. Unfortunately,many people wrongly assume their

spouse or partner will automatically inherit their estate and often familymembers can be left with a larger thannecessary tax bill.

When surveyed80% of peoplewant a face toface meetingwith a trusted adviser and only4% of you trustonline wills.

Daniel PrincePartner

During two weeks in May our solicitors were busy offering theirtime free of charge to clients who wanted to make a will and help Dr Kershaw’s Hospice at the same time. We waived our feesand simply asked clients to make a donation to the hospice.

Make a will and helpa charity at the sametime


what our clients say

“Mr Prince was friendand helped me make

informed decisionsI would have no hesitatio

in recommendingPearson Solicitors.”

NEW LOOKLaw Firm in landmark building

PRACTICE AREA: Private Client


PRACTICE AREA: Litigation

Boundary Disputes -Don’t Fall Out With Your Neighbours

Congratulations to Sarah Majorwho has recently become aGraduate member of CIlex andis now working towards becominga fellow. Sarah is also a memberof Manchester CIlex.

Sarah joined our expanding propertyteam earlier this year but startedstudying in 2008 combining her interestin Law with her thorough knowledgeof the property industry.

She works closely with our conveyancingclients and already has 19 years of experience within the property industry.She is used to dealing with all types ofconveyancing matters from Transfersof Equity, remortgages, sales, purchases,right to buy and new build. In her roleshe will also be assisting our CommericalProperty team.

“I started working in Legal Practice in2011 and combined my studies withhaving two children. By using CIlex I was able to study at an affordablerate and revise around the family”she said.

Graduation Day

for Sarah

“In the current climate of companies out to make a quickbuck it was refreshing to be dealt with by a company whose priorities are totally in the client’s interests.”


As temperatures rise the same can be true of tensionsbetween neighbours, especially where boundaries areconcerned says Christopher Burke, Partner Litigation.

Tree felling, hedge trimming, bringing intradesmen to constructconservatories or carryout landscaping work all

have the potential totrigger animositybetween neighbours,which can escalateto litigation.

The issue affects both residential andcommercial properties, with disputesranging from rights of way, overhangingtrees, building work and access to aneighbour’s land for repairs to your ownproperty.

To avoid costly disputes with neighbours,it’s worth following these simple steps:

Communicate on friendly terms beforeyou take any action. People often embarkon work that can impact on neighbours,putting them on the defensive. The resulting acrimonious feeling can quicklylead to legal action.

Be aware of your legal rights beforestarting any work as you must be certain

that you do have a legal right to makealterations.

You may also need to be aware of yourneighbour’s rights under the Party WallAct 1996 if you intend to carry out worksin the proximity of a party wall or partyfence.

Even if you’re already in dispute withneighbours, it’s still not too late to avoidlitigation. Mediation can often be thekey to facilitating a successful outcomefor all parties.

If no agreement can be reached it’s important to consult a solicitor with specialist experience of boundary disputesto advise on the legal position and assessthe likelihood of a positive outcome incourt.

Finally, it’s worth remembering that evenwinning in court may not put an end tothe situation. The long term outcomecould be continued hostility between youand your neighbour, so think carefullyabout how pursuing a dispute could affectyour family or your business.

ydly

s, n

Divorcing couples counting the impact of‘Pension Freedom’

Previously upon divorce a couple would aim to divide the various capital assets of the marriage – property,personal possessions, cash and pensions, to meet theircurrent needs, and pensions were viewed as an incomegenerating asset in retirement.

Now, they are more likely to pay greater attention to the pension pot of their former spouseas it may be a qualifying pension scheme, this means if a pension sharing order were made intheir favour (by agreement or by the Court) the recipient would have the ability to accesscapital at the age of 55.

Sound financial advice is needed before taking this step - if capital were withdrawn it mayleave that person financially vulnerable in later life if the money released was spent and notinvested wisely.

Separating couples now viewpension funds differently afterthe April rule changes allowingdraw down from defined contributions pension schemesfrom the age of 55. With a growing number of 50+ couplessplitting up good pension advicenow goes hand in hand with a divorce settlement, says divorcespecialist Tracy Crompton.

PRACTICE AREA: Family and Financial Services

A couple whose all-inclusive holiday in Turkey was ruinedthrough food poisoning recently received a settlementfor £4,500 when Pearson Solicitors took up their case.

The firm has maintained its turnover forthe third successive year and is now investing in larger premises to expand itsservices as well as maintaining businessas usual in our Oldham headquarters and specialised Commercial office inHollinwood.

Whilst many commercial law firms havestruggled to recover post-recession, we have steadily grown throughout the economic downturn, with turnover increasing by 20 per cent since 2009 andstaff numbers up by 13 per cent over the same period.

Commercial property and financial servicesare key growth areas for us, with revenuesup by 50 per cent and 11 per cent respectively and we are currently recruiting experienced staff.

Joanne Ormston, partner and practicemanager at Pearson, commented: “This year has been a success for manydifferent reasons. We have remainedprofitable in an increasingly competitiveindustry, attracted talent from largercity firms and grown across a number ofareas, which is crucial for a mixedbusiness practice such as ours.”

Pearson expands afteranother year of growthWe are celebrating another year of growth witha new office and an expanding marketplace.

For more information on this area oflaw get in contact 0161 785 [email protected]


For Food Poisoning on Holiday from Hell

Holiday Couple Get Compensation

Their holiday at Bodrum Spa Resort, Turkey, was a disaster fromthe start, with no clear food labelling, unhygienic conditions,flies constantly landing on food, birds in the restaurant areaand stray cats roaming around. The salad bars and hot food areaswere left open to the elements, with old meats and salads justtopped up and not replaced.

The couple were admitted to the local hospital and treated forGastroenteritis and added complications caused by a nut allergy.

The holiday was booked with a well-known tour operator, butthe client turned to us for advice when the travel companyrejected their initial claim.

Initial liability was denied on the basis that all reasonable checkson the resort had been carried out by resort representatives.Standards are based on what is acceptable in Turkey, not UKstandards, although in this case hygiene fell well below acceptable levels.

Having received the compensation, our client said: “This onlytook two hours of our time and Ian dealt with our case with

minimal disruption, good focus andexperience and I am very pleasedwith the outcome of my case.”

Commenting on the case, Personal Injury Solicitor, Ian Wolstenhulme,added: “These claims are testamentto the risks holiday makers take when travelling abroad when standards are not up to the UK. All too often what was meant to be a relaxing enjoyable break turnsinto a holiday from hell.

“Many people do not realise theycan make a claim in cases of thesetype, they work hard to pay for holidays and deserve compensationwhen things do not go according to plan.”


“We asked for a solicitor to visitour aunt and Hannah Pearson

has been caring and helpful and we wouldrecommend you wholeheartedly.”

PRACTICE AREA: Personal Injury

It was also the 13th year luckyfor us in 2015 with Lexcel accreditation - an industry highstandard in legal services.

Taking Careand Taking Control of your Future

Dr Kershaw’s Hospice, domicilary care team Caremark and Pearson Solicitors and Financial Advisers, joined forces in a recent ‘Taking Care’ informative afternoon as part of NationalCarer’s Week and were praised by the Mayor of Oldham, Councillor Ateeque Ur-Rehman for bringing organisations together.

The aim was to encourage people to plan ahead for later life making sure their wishes are carried out as they get older.

Planning your future, your finances, your health, your care, your legacy, wereall part of the theme and exhibitors from a wide range of organisations were onhand to give advice.

“With over 7 million carers in the UK it has never been more important that peopleplan ahead,” said Suzanne Wright, of Pearson Solicitors. “We wanted to create adrop in afternoon for the carers of Oldham and their families to access the relevantinformation they need and get them thinking about planning their futures.

Stephanie Doherty, of Caremark is conscious of the need for organisations to bringtheir expertise to the table when it comes to looking after older people.

“We’re an ageing population and we need to recognise it and make life easierfor the generations to come,” she said.

“Dr Kershaw’s didn’t hesitate when Pearsons and Caremark asked us to be partof their ‘Taking Care’ event. It’s a real opportunity to get involved with the carers of Oldham and hopefully raise awareness of the Hospice and what wedo”, added Angela Higham, of Dr Kershaw’s Hospice.

Full details can be found on our website www.pearsonlegal.co.uk or call 0161 785 3500

Pearson’s advise many buy-to-let landlordsas they build up property portfolios.Commenting on the latest survey, conveyancing solicitor, Victoria Marshall,said:

“With interest rates remaining at an alltime low many individuals are finding investing in property as the more attractivealternative than savings for their hardearned cash, said Victoria.

“Nationwide has recently reported that38% of properties were sold to cash buyers in the first quarter of the year.

“Manchester has had a lotof investments in recentyears with the newlydeveloped business district at Spinningfields,

the relocation of the BBC and othermajor international companies such asAstraZeneca, Google and Kellogg’s establishing themselves in and aroundManchester so it’s clear why people arechoosing to invest in the North.

“The Northern Powerhouse and intendedplans to transform Manchester airportalso look to secure it firmly as the secondCity of the UK,” she added.

At a recent seminar our team presented a series of case studies to estate agents fromall over the North West on what to look out

for and how to avoid property pitfalls.

Check out www.pearsonlegal.co.ukconveyancing pages for our tips onbuying and selling your home.

PRACTICE AREA: Conveyancing

North West is buy-to-let hotspot,Property Expert Victoria Marshall comments on boom times ahead

Need Commercial AdviceCall us today on0161 785 3500

Property investors are looking Northand Manchester is top of the list whenit comes to buy-to-let investments.

OLDHAM

T: 0161 785 3500 E: [email protected] www.pearsonlegal.co.uk

Pearson Solicitors and Financial Advisers LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales, registered numberOC351719, registered office 31 Queen Street, Oldham OL1 1RD. Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Authorised andregulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

ASHTON HOLLINWOOD

Solicitors Kick OffFor Men’s Cancer CharityA team of wannabe footballers

from Pearson’s dusted off their

boots in a fundraising event in aid

of testicular cancer.

The team were supporting BaggyTrousers UK which was formed in May2014 after 23 year old Jack Broadleyfrom Ashton overcame his battles withtesticular cancer.

The main aim of BaggyTrousers is to promote regular checks and provide engaging awareness sessions and support for young men aged 14-26 about testicular cancer.

“Lads Check YourNads is sort of ourcatch phrase, wereally want to getboys to not be embarrassed andshy of checkingthemselves andto promoteawareness of men’s issues in the sameway women’s are highlighted.

“It’s great that companies like PearsonSolicitors are involved in helping myfundraising, I turned to them with mycase after I had an alleged misdiagnosis,”said Jack.

Despite not getting through the qualifiersteam manager, Richard ‘Ronaldo’ Mills,Pearson Account Manager said the aimof the day was to raise as much moneyas possible and have fun.

Get your ducks in a row this summer and joinus at the Dr Kershaw’s duck race for whatpromises to be a quacking good family day out.The event is being held at 2pm on Saturday August 22nd at Chadderton Hall Park and is sponsored by Pearson Solicitors.

There are rides, games, stalls, food and music to accompany theevent, prizes for decorated ducks and of course the race winner.

Ducks are understarters orders Solicitors

SupportingAs proud supporters of the Oldham Coliseum, Pearson’s Private Client and Financial Services Departments have joined forces to offer sponsorship and support for September’s premier performance of ‘Hot Stuff’.

Premiered right here at the Coliseum, Hot Stuff has becomea cult classic and this performance is produced by the dreamteam who brought us Chicago, so it’s guaranteed to have abrand new audience dancing in the aisles.

For more information contact the Coliseum Box Office directly on 0161 624 2829.

legal & financial news inside view...inside view legal & financial news law firm new look...

Documents