Terms of Business

Definitions:

The term “the Company” shall mean Chambers and McClay Legal Services.
The term “the Client” shall mean you.
The term “you” and “your” shall mean “the Client”.
The Society shall mean the Society of Will and Estate Planning.

Practitioners

For the purposes herein Will or Wills shall include any other document as is prepared in accordance with your instructions

Procedures

On the initial appointment taking your detailed instructions and giving appropriate advice on matters relating to the preparation of your Will(s). Any queries or questions will be answered and a full explanation given on the contents and terminology used in the drafting of your Will(s)

The Company undertakes to:

Provide you with the best advice on matters relating to the preparation of your Will(s).
In some cases this may mean advice to draw up other documents or to take other action which may incur further fees. In such cases full details of such charges will be given to you in advance and you are under no obligation to proceed with any ancillary services offered. However, in some circumstances you may be asked to sign a declaration that you are acting against the advice given.

Dispatch your Will(s) by second class post within 21 working days of taking your initial instructions. However where circumstances occur which are outside the companies control which will result in a delay beyond this period you will be given a full explanation and the documents produced as soon as is possible.

Maintain the strictest confidence and not pass your name or details on to any other organisation without your express permission. The Company is registered under the data protection act 1988 and therefore all information disclosed to us will remain totally confidential.

The Company undertakes to refund money paid in respect of preparation of your Will(s) should you change your mind within ten days from the date of taking instructions. However the Company reserves the right to charge you for advice given and for work carried out on your behalf in accordance with your signed instructions.

The Company offers a chargeable attestation that supervises the signing and witnessing of your Will(s) at home. The company offers a free Attestation checking service providing the Will(s) are returned for checking. The Company will not take responsibility for ensuring the validity of your Will(s) where the attestation or checking service was not carried or supervised out by an agent of the company. The signing of your Will(s) (the execution) must be carried out according to the law of England and Wales in order for your Will(s) to be valid. All Will(s) will be supplied with full instructions of how they are to be completed.

Where the Company offers a Will storage service, the Company does not accept liability or obligation to advise you of any changes in legislation or taxation which may affect you either directly or indirectly and may necessitate a review of your Will(s). Any Will should be reviewed every 3 years and on the occasion of material change in your circumstances such as divorce, marriage, the birth of children or the inheritance of a large sum of money etcYour obligations are:In order for the Company to provide accurate advice and to produce an effective legal document you are required to disclose all relevant facts and answers to all the questions asked. The Company shall not accept liability in respect of information which was not disclosed and therefore not documented by the person taking your instructions and which comes to light at a later date as being relevant and which may affect the validity, content, or fit for purpose of your Will(s) or advice given.

To read through the Will(s) and other documents provided to confirm they correctly reflect your wishes as to the distribution of your estate and the names and addresses of the persons mentioned in your Will(s) are correct adding any missing data not supplied at the time of taking your instructions.

It is your responsibility to return the documents together with any amendments to the Company within ten days of receipt. If you fail to return your documents to the Company the Company shall accept no liability for the Will(s). Therefore the Company recommends recorded methods of postage.
The Company will not be responsible for any delay due to your failure to comply with the above.
To notify the Company if you do not receive your Will(s) within 21 working days of the first appointment, unless otherwise agreed.

To pay the fees in full on the date of the initial appointment.

If you are having the attestation service you should arrange for the witnesses to be present at the time of execution of your Will(s). The appointment fee will apply even if execution is not carried out at that agreed time.

Client care

The Company is committed to providing you with a high quality service. An essential part of that service is that we will communicate effectively with you and that you are kept informed of progress.

The Company operates a full customer care service of which all our staff are fully aware and the company maintains a full complaints procedure to which a complaint should first be addressed. If the matter is unable to be resolved to your satisfaction you may refer it in writing to

The Director General, The Society of Will Writers, First Floor Chambers, Roe House, Boundary Lane, South Hykeham, Lincoln LN6 9NQ

The Company complies with the Society’s code of practice of which a copy is available from them upon request.