Burges Salmon LLP's Bristol team is active nationally and internationally, advising high-net-worth individuals and families, as well as trustees, on matters ranging from tax structuring and exemptions to trust terminations and restructurings. Cross-border estate planning and trust structuring represent key areas of work for Suzanna Harvey, who co-heads the team alongside Jim Aveline, an expert on landed estate matters. Former practice head John Barnett has longstanding experience working with entrepreneurial clients, and Catherine De Maid regularly advises on cross-border tax planning matters with philanthropy aspects. Emma Heelis-Adams advises UK non-domiciled clients on succession planning, and Tim Williams advises on land development taxation issues.

Charles Russell Speechlys LLP's ‘hugely experienced' Cheltenham-based team is capable of advising on a wide breadth of private wealth issues, ranging from tax and estate planning for family business clients to cross-border trust and asset structuring, as well as trust administration involving landed estates. The team further benefits from integrated firm-wide expertise in real estate, commercial, charity, and agriculture matters, enabling it to comprehensively serve a wide range of private clients based domestically and abroad. Henry Fea is a key contact for tax and succession questions involving overseas and UK non-domiciled clients, and he co-heads the team with Julia Cox, who chiefly advises entrepreneurial clients on succession planning. Christopher Page is vastly experienced with landed estates work, which is also a growing area of expertise for Katie Talbot.

With offices in Bristol and Taunton, Clarke Willmott LLP stands out for its client base of high-net-worth entrepreneurs and international clients, who rely on the team’s expertise in business succession, inheritance tax mitigation, estate and trust administration, and cross-border tax matters. The team has extensive experience working with the owners of landed estates and rural businesses, owing to the expertise of David Maddock and Tom Chiffers. Anthony Fairweather jointly leads the team with Samantha Neagle, who specialises in the administration of complex estates with IP and business assets, and Emma Pope, who assists clients with securing inheritance tax reliefs for high-value estates. Carol Hawking is well versed in tax matters concerning non-domiciled and international clients. Claire Johnson joined the team from TLT in July 2023.

Michelmores LLP's team is spread across a network of offices in the region, allowing it to comprehensively counsel local and national clients, as well as high-net-worth individuals with connections to the US, on a wide range of private wealth questions. Entrepreneurial clients benefit from James Frampton's knowledge of business property relief matters and extensive understanding of US-UK estate planning matters, while practice head Sandra Brown cements the team’s strong reputation for high-value trust administration. Edward Porter handles a wide variety of tax matters and is well regarded for his advice on trust and charity structuring and restructuring mandates. The team’s strengths in landed estate work were bolstered with the arrival of Iwan Williams from Shakespeare Martineau LLP as part of the opening of a new office in Cheltenham in May 2023.

Stephen Green and Tim Osborne jointly lead the wealth management team at boutique private client firm Wiggin Osborne Fullerlove, which maintains a market-leading reputation for advising entrepreneurial clients on family business succession, as well as on cross-border estate administration and tax planning matters. The team also regularly advises on UK and international foundation and trust law, and clients benefit from its longstanding expertise in tax and succession planning for families with assets in the UK and USA. Key contacts in the team include Matthew Shayle, who advises non-UK domiciled individuals on tax compliance and trust administration, Matthew Cain, who regularly assists with the structuring of trusts and life assurance policies, and succession planning expert Rose Chamberlayne. Stephen Pallister and Hannah Hughes are further key contacts.

Wilsons' Salisbury-based private client team is highly capable of handling a diverse caseload of matters related to estate and succession planning, charitable giving, offshore trust administration, and inheritance tax mitigation. Acting for both beneficiaries and trustees, Tim Fullerlove stands out for his knowledge of cross-border and offshore tax and trust matters, and he is also well regarded for his ability to advise on tax-effective dispute settlements. Fullerlove co-heads the practice with Frances Mayne, who regularly acts as a Court of Protection deputy in mental capacity work, and Belinda Watson, who maintains close relationships with a roster of landed estate clients. Rupert Wilkinson is noted for his ability to advise entrepreneurial clients on estate planning matters.

Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP stands out for its expertise in relation to offshore work, with a penchant for advising non-domiciled and US-connected high-net-worth individuals on trust creation and management, as well as on inheritance tax planning. The team is also well regarded for its experience advising on domestic tax and trust establishment questions, particularly in connection with landed estates and family investment companies. James Radcliffe leads the team and specialises in providing advice on UK-US estate planning matters, while Christopher Kerr-Smiley chiefly advises on complex trust structuring and restructuring matters, as well as on inheritance tax mitigation. Suzy Pawsey regularly advises on the administration and execution of deceased estates.

Regional and local business and property owners, farmers, and trustees frequently instruct Ashfords LLP to handle complex trust administration and will drafting, as well as inheritance and capital gains tax planning. The team is particularly well versed in advising on the administration of landed and farming business estates, with Michael Alden standing out for his extensive knowledge of agricultural property matters. Alden co-heads the practice with Kerry Morgan-Gould, who stands out for her expertise in trust matters. Inheritance tax planning expert Michael Westbrook joined the team from Thrings LLP in August 2023, while Tom Biddick left the firm in April 2023.

Ellis Jones Solicitors LLP provides vulnerable clients, individuals with offshore assets, business owners, and trustees with an ‘exemplary level of service' across the full range of tax planning and estate administration matters. The team is very experienced with the creation and administration of discretionary trusts, and it is also regularly instructed to act in Court of Protection matters. Practice head Carla Brown is praised by clients for her ‘remarkable depth of knowledge’ and regularly advises ultra-high-net-worth individuals on complex inheritance tax matters and trust issues.

Foot Anstey's succession and tax practice regularly works with the firm’s real estate and corporate teams to provide integrated advice on tax burden mitigation in the context of high-value property and business transactions. The team is also well versed in estate administration and probate matters, standing out in particular for its ability to handle cross-border issues. Tax expert and trust practitioner Anna Parker leads the practice, which is also home to international tax specialist Michael Evans and probate expert Michelle Seddon.

Harrison Clark Rickerbys is noted for its work with farmers, business owners, and vulnerable and elderly clients, who seek out the team for advice on all types of tax planning, will drafting, and estate administration matters. The team is very active in Court of Protection work, owing particularly to the expertise of Phillipa Bruce-Kerr, an expert on the intersection of private wealth and welfare issues. Tax and estate planning expert Alex Taylor leads the team, and trust administration expert Tom Murphy-Kirkhope also a key contact.

RWK Goodman fields a deep bench of succession planning, mental capacity, and trust administration experts who act for high-net-worth individuals and vulnerable clients on the full range of domestic and cross-border tax and probate matters. Bath-based wills and probate specialist Edward Vidnes is well versed in Court of Protection and deputyship work and co-heads the team with Swindon-based inheritance tax planning and trust expert Mandy Casavant, who has niche expertise in the administration of estates involving digital assets. James McNeile stands out for his knowledge of international tax and trust matters, and Amanda Noyce is a key contact for contentious work.

Stephens Scown LLP bolstered its Exeter and Truro-based private client team with the arrival of new practice head Tom Biddick, an expert in handling succession planning and estate administration matters for clients with rural and agricultural assets, from Ashfords LLP in May 2023. The team continues to handle a steady stream of complex will drafting and trust creation matters for regional business and landed estate owners, and it is also well versed in Court of Protection work. Inheritance tax planning specialists Philip Reed and Graham Murdoch are names to note, as is trust specialist Ian Newcombe.

Under the leadership of Debbie Gale, the private client team at TLT is very active in trusteeship matters, advising on the creation and administration of a large portfolio of family and charitable trusts often involving multi-jurisdictional business and property holdings. Tax advice in connection with high-value charitable donations and gifts represents another cornerstone of the practice, as does mental capacity work through the Court of Protection, for which Sarah Pitman serves as a key contact. Former practice co-head Claire Johnson left the firm in July 2023.

In addition to regularly advising on will drafting, trust creation and administration, and Court of Protection work, VWV stands out for its ability to handle estate administration matters for national charities and for its niche expertise in setting up high-value trusts holding personal injury and medical negligence awards. Leila Goodarzi regularly advises high-net-worth individuals on tax burden mitigation and succession planning matters, and she co-heads the team with Michelle Rose, who is noted for her deputyship and trusteeship expertise.

Wansbroughs’ Devizes-based private client team stands out for its advice on the creation, registration, and administration of trusts involving cross-border assets, landed estates, and businesses, and the team also handles a wide range of inheritance and capital gains tax mitigation matters, as well as Court of Protection work. The team is jointly led by Alan Ciechan, who chiefly advises trustees and the owners of landed estates on tax-efficient trust and corporate structuring, and Anna Wensley Stock, who is well versed in estate administration and trusteeship matters. For mental capacity matters, Thomas Britten is also highly recommended.

Blanchards Bailey LLP's Dorset practice maintains close connections with regional farming and entrepreneurial clients, who instruct the team for wide-reaching advice on Inheritance Tax and succession planning, estate administration, and will drafting. Jerome Dodge heads up the practice and is well versed in the administration of agricultural estates, as well as in the drafting of wills and Inheritance Tax planning schemes, while Sophie Lawrence regularly handles Court of Protection work.

Steele Raymond LLP expanded the scope of its private client offering with the recruitment of international tax expert and worldwide STEP chair Kelly Greig in April 2023, allowing the team to serve a broad base of high-net-worth individuals seeking advice on multi-jurisdictional tax and estate planning. Greig is key port of call for clients with assets in Southeast Asia and the US and co-heads the team with Joe Spring, who spearheads the practice’s estate administration offering and is well equipped to handle inheritance tax matters.

In addition to handling ‘all aspects of trust and probate work', Stone King LLP's Bath-based family practice offers clients a ‘wealth of experience' in international tax matters and in the administration of agricultural estates. Kathryn Layzell and Alison Allen, who regularly represent vulnerable clients as a court-appointed deputy, jointly head up the team with cross-border tax and succession planning specialist Daniel Harris, who excels in UK-France and UK-US matters. Andrew Mortimer is well versed in landed estate matters and inheritance tax planning.

As well as routinely handling will drafting and tax planning matters, Thrings LLP assists executors and trustees with the administration of estates and works closely with the firm’s agricultural and corporate teams to provide specialised advice to farmers and family business owners. Penelope Munro is a key contact in the practice and is an expert in rural estate administration matters, in addition to regularly handling Court of Protection work. Former practice head Michael Westbrook departed the firm in August 2023, while the team recruited Ben Coulson from Shakespeare Martineau LLP in September 2023.

Tozers Solicitors LLP is well versed across the entire range of succession planning and tax mitigation matters, allowing the team to regularly assist a broad roster of clients with will drafting and estate administration, as well as with deputyship applications through the Court of Protection. Practice head Gráinne Staunton is regularly involved in the administration of complex estates and fields niche expertise in advising holiday park owners on securing business property relief from inheritance tax. Rachael Morley chiefly advises farmers and business owners on wealth preservation matters, and Sue Halfyard is well versed in probate matters.

Led from Southampton by Mihiri Gajraj, Trethowans LLP maintains offices in Dorset and Wiltshire which specialise in providing tax and estate planning advice to high-net-worth individuals, many of whom hold business assets domestically and abroad. Adam Scott is very active on trust creation and administration matters, while Bonnie Ward, who joined from Foot Anstey in May 2023, advises clients with landed estates and agricultural assets on succession planning and will drafting matters, often in the context of real estate transactions.

Led from London by Jonathan Kropman, Trowers & Hamlins LLP fields an Exeter team with considerable experience in the creation and administration of trusts for high-net-worth individuals and is particularly adept at advising domestic, international, and UK non-domiciled entrepreneurial clients on wealth and succession planning. The practice also routinely draws on firm-wide strengths in property and real estate matters to advise landowners on tax mitigation. Key contacts include Frank Cook, who is adept at advising on the administration of estates involving family businesses, Amanda Rainford, who is an expert on international tax matters, and Charisse Crawford, who represents clients in private wealth disputes.

Estate planning and mental capacity expert Simon Cook heads up the Cheltenham-based private client team at Willans LLP, which is noted for its cross-border client base and its ability to assist vulnerable clients with Court of Protection applications and deputyships. The team is regularly instructed by clients with agricultural assets to advise on estate administration and inheritance tax mitigation, and it also regularly advises clients with international property or business assets on succession issues and will drafting. Tom O’Riordan and Laura Stone are key contacts for trust matters.

Wollens‘ ‘extremely approachable and knowledgeable‘ team combines expertise in estate administration matters with a longstanding record of mental capacity work, allowing it to comprehensively serve both high-net-worth and vulnerable clients in the region. The team regularly advises on the execution of trusts with domestic and overseas business and property assets, and Katrina Vollentine and Edward Lee routinely act as court-appointed deputies on financial and welfare matters. Lee co-heads the team alongside estate administration expert Charlotte McGregor and wills and trusts expert Karen Miller.

Succession issues are a key area of focus for BPE Solicitors LLP practice head Sam Thornton, who joined the firm in early 2023 from Thursfields and routinely advises on the tax structuring of entrepreneurial and landed estates. Shanade Smith handles probate matters and deputyship applications for vulnerable and elderly clients, while Philip Allen chiefly advises on trust and inheritance tax issues.

Frettens LLP's team is noted for providing a ‘professional, efficient, and engaging' service to clients seeking assistance with will writing, estate and trust administration, and tax burden mitigation, with a particular penchant for handling rural estates. Practice head James Hammersley is very experienced in advising on the creation of discretionary trusts and also regularly advises on inheritance tax matters.

Will writing and trust planning, Court of Protection applications, and inheritance tax mitigation are areas in which Plymouth firm GA Solicitors excels. The private client team regularly draws upon the firm’s strength in commercial matters to advise local clients on business and farm succession planning, with practice head Jonathan Hall standing out for his expertise administering entrepreneurial, agricultural, and heritage assets. Will preparation expert Matthew Rose and mental capacity specialist Catherine Bailey are also commended.

The Wiltshire-based team at Goughs Solicitors is jointly headed up by property ownership and estate administration expert Emma Taylor and by Phillip Bolton, who stands out for his experience advising clients on the management of agricultural and entrepreneurial wealth. In addition to handling estate, capital and inheritance tax issues, the team has experience with deputyships and powers of attorney, for which Trish Watkins and Sarah Loveless stand out.

Estate administration expert Alison Lloyd joined Laceys from Moore Barlow in May 2023 to take over the practice leadership from Kate Mansfield, who still contributes regularly to the firm’s caseload of probate, tax burden relief, and Court of Protection matters. Matthew Crampton is a further key contact in the team and routinely advises on the administration of discretionary trusts.

Lester Aldridge LLP's team handles domestic succession planning matters, advises on tax compliance and mitigation, and assists with the administration of cross-border estates for international and non-UK domiciled clients. The Bournemouth-based team is led jointly by Kurt Lee, a seasoned estate practitioner specialising in inheritance tax matters, and Oliver Phipps, who takes the lead on international private client work.

The team at Porter Dodson LLP is based across a network of seven offices in Somerset, Devon, and Dorset, enabling it to advise clients throughout the region on probate matters, tax relief and compliance, and wills and succession planning. Under the leadership of estate planning expert Sharon Collier, the team offers particular strengths in the administration of agricultural estates and is also active in mental capacity work.

Under the leadership of estate planning and long-term care expert Heledd Wyn, Shakespeare Martineau LLP‘s private client team is highly capable of guiding clients through a broad range of tax and succession issues. The team regularly leverages firm-wide capacities in corporate matters to advise family business owners on the tax and estate planning aspects of their business activities, and it also routinely assists with the administration of complex trusts. Vulnerable clients also frequently rely on the team’s expertise in Court of Protection work.

Wards Solicitors LLP is praised for its ‘great depth of knowledge' in the administration of estates, with a particular focus on mental capacity work, as well as on will drafting and capital tax planning. Team lead Jenny Pierce regularly acts as a Panel Deputy and handles Court of Protection work for elderly and vulnerable individuals, in addition to handling trust execution matters, while Tom Scoffham chiefly handles will and probate matters.

In addition to handling a steady stream of will drafting, estate execution, and trust structuring matters for regional entrepreneurs and property owners, the team at Wolferstans is routinely instructed to handle deputyship and Court of Protection applications, owing to the mental capacity expertise of Samantha Buckthought. Gemma Smith heads up the team and is an expert in probate and trust issues.