This is a very helpful announcement from OPG Scotland.

“We are aware that difficulties have been encountered when trying to use a non-Scottish Power of Attorney (PoA) in Scotland, as Organisations have not accepted the authority given in a non-Scottish PoA.

The Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 suggests a non-Scottish PoA is automatically valid in Scotland. Consequently there is no arrangement under the law for having it formally endorsed.

In recognition of the difficulties experienced and to offer support we have devised a Certificate which can be printed and presented along with the PoA to an Organisation. This may assist in getting a non-Scottish PoA accepted in Scotland. If you need more information generally or about how best you might proceed in a given case please contact e-mail opg@scotcourts.gov.uk“

More on this can be found here.

The latest update from the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) on the current Powers of Attorney position can be found here.

The update includes the following:

“We are delighted that uptake of the electronic process for submitting powers of attorney is becoming increasingly popular. This system is easy to use and allows PoAs to be registered within a matter of days.  We would urge you, if you have not used the electronic format, to please give this active consideration. “

If you are looking for legal content for your website to keep it both relevant and up to date please contact andy@legalknowledgescotland.com

If you require private client or commercial property holiday or other temporary absence cover please get in touch with James Aitken: james@legalknowledgescotland.com

“The Scottish Government has produced guidance to help support the involvement of GPs in adult protection.

This guidance is designed to ensure that GPs are part of local multi-agency arrangements for adult protection and thereby enabled to fulfil their statutory responsibilities under the Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007.”

The guidance can be found on the OPG Scotland website which can be found here.

Trustees of David Zetland Settlement v HMRC [2013] UKFTT 284 (TC)

The First-tier Tax Tribunal has denied inheritance tax business property relief on a block of office lettings owned and managed by a trust.  The main reason given was that a commercial letting is mainly an investment rather than a business even though many of the services provided were over and above what would normally be expected under a tenancy. 

The decision shows how difficult it is to persuade a tribunal that let property is not mainly the holding of an investment.  

The report from the First-tier Tax Tribunal can be found here. 

“Applicants applying under the access to funds scheme are reminded that applications in which an incapable adult’s income consists solely of Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) benefits, is likely to be returned.

This is because the least restrictive option, as per of the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 is to manage an incapable adult’s funds through DWP appointeeship. Sections 1(2) and 1(3) of the the Act provide further guidance to support this.

However, in those circumstances where there is income over and above DWP benefits, such as the individual being in receipt of:

• a private pension,
• savings above the lower capital limit, or
• a lump sum required to pay accrued expenses or debts,

an access to funds application can be completed, if required. This applies to all applicants wishing to make an application to access the adults funds.”

More on this can be found here.”

HMRC has added new guidance to its inheritance tax manual regarding the entitlement of a farmhouse to agricultural property relief under the character appropriate test.

The guidance reflects the taxpayer’s victory at the First-tier Tribunal in Golding v HMRC [2011] UKFTT 351 (TC)). 

More on this can be found here.

An interesting case concerning an attempt to have a Will set aside.

The deceased’s children attempted to overturn their father’s Will on the basis that their father was delusional.  Their father left almost £6.7 million largely  to a charitable trust.

The Court of Session however was “not satisfied that the pursuer [the children] have established that there were periods when the testator’s paranoid personality disorder was of such delusional intensity as to deprive him of testamentary capacity. ”   In other words, although the testator was paranoid he still had mental capacity

The case report can be found here and a report from the Herald here.

The UK Government has launched the Charities Online system allowing charities and sports clubs to claim gift aid repayments via HMRC‘s website.

The Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme has also gone live, allowing charities to claim top-up payments on cash donations of up to £20 without donor declarations.

More on this can be found here.