Residential Conveyancing
Our aim is to simplify the process of buying, selling or remortgaging your home. To this end we have a dedicated Conveyancing Team that pride themselves on their friendly approach and their policy of no hidden charges.
We recognise that legal costs can be a worry so we work on a fixed fee basis. At the outset you will be given a fixed fee so you know exactly where you stand.
Buying or selling your home can be a very complicated and precise process and it needs to be if your best interests are to be looked after. We have many repeat clients, a sure sign we are providing our clients with the right advice and an excellent service. We recognise that providing a high level of client service is vital to the success of our business and we will always strive to meet or exceed your expectations.
If you are buying, selling or remortgaging your home and you need any advice or reassurance with a personal touch contact the Conveyancing Team today for a quote
Commercial Conveyancing
Our commercial property department has experience in acting for individuals, family businesses, pension funds, investors, property developers, house builders, high street retailers, government agencies and industrial landlords. We advise on all aspects of commercial property law including:-
- Sale and purchases
- Contracts
- Leases
- Sale and Lease back
- Funding
- Industrial Property
- Retail Property
- Offices
- Property Development
- Property Investment
- Planning Law
- Environmental Issues
- Site Assembly
Whatever job you instruct us on we will ensure that we put in place for you the right agreement. We will keep you fully informed of progress throughout the transaction.
Contact Ian Armstrong or Lesley Davies today to discuss your specific requirements and to obtain a fee quotation.
Family
Platt & Fishwick have a dedicated Family Law Department. We offer a sympathetic approach to all family problems and we appreciate that, whatever the dispute, be it a marriage breakdown or issues relating to children, it all needs to be handled in a careful and sensitive way.
The Family Department itself comprises of specialist family practitioners who have a wealth of experience being members of the Family Law Panel, the Family Law (Advanced) Panel and the Children Panel. As such, we can deal with all areas of family law such as divorce, separation, domestic violence, co-habitee disputes, separation agreements, financial matters, residence/contact disputes, care proceedings and adoption. We are able to represent children in proceedings as well as parents and grandparents.
As for those who want to achieve solutions amicably and outside of the court process we also offer, as an alternative, collaborative law. Please call us for more details.
We are members of Resolution and, as such, aim to deal with disputes in a fair and conciliatory way whilst still maintaining our client’s best interests at heart. We offer a professional service second to none. We are dedicated, approachable trusted lawyers who endeavour to achieve the best outcome for each individual client.
We are able to offer an initial free half hour advice during which time we can assess your eligibility for public funding (ie legal aid). In the event that you are not eligible, you will find our private rates competitive.
To find out more please contact Sandra Finch.
Landlord and Tenant
We can advise you whether you are a landlord with property to rent or a tenant who needs to take a lease. We deal with residential leases, leases of shops, offices, factories and leisure premises. We will check the terms of the lease to minimise risks to you. We know that getting the property deal done is important to you and more often than not, time critical. We will always act quickly and complete your deal in the shortest possible time whilst ensuring that we properly investigate title, all other relevant matters and carry out the necessary due diligence searches and enquiries.
We can also deal with your business lease renewal by serving notices for landlords and making court applications for tenants to protect their position in the property while the lease is renewed.
Licensing
If you are buying or leasing licensed premises, we can advise and assist you with your licensing application and complete the necessary forms on your behalf.
If you are making alterations to your licensed premises or seeking to alter the way in which your business operates, we can assist you with making an application to vary the Licence.
Sales of alcohol conducted from licensed premises must be supervised by a “designated premises supervisor” who must hold a personal licence. We can assist in completing the personal licence application.
We can place for you the necessary advertisements in the local newspaper and send copies of your application to all the necessary bodies and interested parties.
Private Client
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Wills and Estate Planning
We can help you to plan ahead for a time when you are no longer here to ensure that your family are looked after and your wishes are followed.
Whether you have a simple will in mind or you have a family situation which requires a more complex will we can offer practical advice in a friendly environment. Our aim is to make the process of making a will and sorting out your affairs as straightforward as possible.
We can advise you about estate planning and look into ways of protecting your home and assets for future generations.
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Tax Advice
Inheritance Tax
As house prices rise, more and more people are worried about whether their heirs will have to pay inheritance tax on their death. We can give you specialist advice so you know how inheritance tax will affect you and your estate.
Capital Gains Tax
For many clients Capital Gains Tax (CGT) may be an issue when they come to sell or gift a property.
We can advise you on the available reliefs and if advice is sought in advance we can advise you of the most effective way to mitigate the CGT bill.
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Probate and Administration of Estates
When a person dies his/her estate will need to be administered (in other words their affairs will need to be sorted out). The person who has died may have chosen who he/she would like to take on this role by appointing an “Executor” in their will. Probate is the process of obtaining a formal document from the High Court to confirm the Executor’s appointment. The document is known as the ‘grant of probate’.
Where there is no valid will, then an ‘administrator’ is appointed by the Court, to carry out the same role.
We can assist Executors by handling all aspects of the administration including identifying all the assets, obtaining probate, paying inheritance tax (if any), paying off debts and expenses, sorting out final income tax returns and distributing the estate to the beneficiaries.
We also offer support to Executors who are undertaking the administration themselves but who may need help with particular aspects of the process.
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Trust Advice and Management
Trusts can come in many shapes and forms – some will be created in a will and others may have been set up by a person during their lifetime.
Trusts can have many advantages including:
- Tax planning
- Asset protection
- To make provision for younger generations or vulnerable family members
- To protect compensation received in a personal injury award
We can advise on all aspects of setting up a trust and can also help trustees with the ongoing management.
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Care Home Issues
As we get older most of us would prefer to stay in our own homes but for many people illness means that a care home, is the only option.
We can help families understand what rights they have to choose the care home who should be paying for the cost of this, Care Home Contracts and Third Party Top Up Fees.
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Home Equity Release Plans
For a lot of people their main asset is the family home and for some a Home Equity Release Plan is a way to free up some cash by releasing equity from the home.
We can advise on all aspects of the different types of schemes that are on the market.
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Powers of Attorney
We can help you to safeguard your future and make provision for a time when you are no longer able to make or communicate decisions because of an illness or injury. We can help you decide if a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is right for you.
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Court of Protection
We act for families who are faced with managing a relative’s affairs where no power of attorney has been made. This often involves an application to the Court of Protection to have someone appointed as a Deputy. The Deputy is appointed by the Court to look after a person’s affairs and/or make health/welfare decisions on his/her behalf. This can be a lengthy process but our experience in this field means we can provide support to families throughout the whole process.
For more information or to discuss your specific requirements please contact Louise Collett to obtain a fee quotation.
Personal Injury
We have represented accident victims in and around Wigan for over 90 years winning compensation measured in millions of pounds as a result, in cases ranging across the whole spectrum of injury claims, from motor accidents or accidents at work or elsewhere to product liability and industrial disease claims.
We understand how traumatic even the most apparently straightforward accident can be and that the rules and processes involved in securing proper compensation can seem daunting. Our expertise and emphasis on communication with clients means you will be taken through the process in a straightforward way with the minimum of fuss.
Pursuing a personal injury claim through a conditional fee agreement (commonly known as a “no win no fee” agreement) is the norm these days as legal aid has generally not been available to accident victims for a number of years. We offered “no win no fee” agreements to our clients as soon as we were allowed to do so and as a result have built up significant experience of pursuing cases in this way. If we win, we recover our costs from the other side without taking anything from your compensation. If we lose we do not charge.
We are not dependent on the insurance industry for our cases, or any other middle man and we will not sell you an insurance policy you do not need. We will only act in your best interests and not otherwise.
All accident claims are handled by Mark Richardson who has been a personal injury solicitor for over 20 years. He is a member of the Solicitors Regulation Authority Personal Injury Accreditation Scheme (Law Society Personal Injury Panel) and is a member of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers – accredited as a Senior Litigator.
We offer a free initial consultation which can be at our Head Office in Wigan, at our Standish Office or at home if need be. If you have been injured as a result of an accident, it is always worth checking the position with us, even if you are not sure just how somebody else might be to blame or even if you think you may be partially to blame.
Litigation Matters
Civil disputes unavoidably arise from time to time, whether it be with a family member or neighbour or someone you have done business with either commercially on behalf of your own business or as a private individual. Few people willingly find themselves before a Court or Tribunal and the various processes involved can seem intimidating and difficult to follow. At Platt & Fishwick, we have accumulated wide experience of all kinds of disputes over many years and are here to guide you through whatever type of case it might be.
Quite rightly, the Courts themselves regard litigation as a last resort and encourage parties to settle their disputes where they can, either by negotiation or some other form of alternative dispute resolution. At Platt & Fishwick we will advise you on the range of options open to you but with the experience and ability to take firm and decisive action as and when needed.
Our litigation department deals with all types of civil dispute including:-
- Business disputes
- Employment claims for both employer and employee
- Contractual disputes and consumer claims
- All aspects of property litigation
- Wills and Inheritance Act matters
- Debt recovery
We offer a free initial interview to discuss and assess any kind of civil dispute including the possibilities open to you, what those options might cost and the range of methods of funding that might be available.
Please call today to see how we can help.
Employment Matters
We are experienced in representing both employers and employees in the whole spectrum of employment disputes before the Employment Tribunal and elsewhere. If you feel you have been unfairly dismissed or otherwise treated unfairly at work, or alternatively if you are an employer with personnel issues and unsure of just what your rights in the matter are then we can bring our experience to bear on your behalf to produce a fair and proper solution for you.
We can advise on proposed compromise agreements and also draft such agreements if need be.
We can also advise upon and prepare standard terms and conditions of employment and more detailed employment contacts to meet your particular business requirements.
The first interview is always free at which we can advise on the various methods of funding employment matters. We regularly act for parties on "no win no fee" agreements where appropriate and also pursuant to before the event or family legal protection insurance policies.
