John advises private clients. He is an experienced tax and estate planning specialist, with particular expertise in inheritance tax and capital gains tax. John’s work includes complex will drafting, advising on the creation, administration and winding-up of all types of trust, and the associated taxation implications and estate administration. He is particularly experienced in working with the agricultural community.
John is also a trustee of a number of sizeable private charities. Professional memberships include the Law Society Private Client Section and the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.
Expertise
- Estate planning and succession issues
- Wills
- Trusts
- Inheritance tax
- Charity administration
Experience
- Has acted for numerous high-net-worth clients including four who feature in the Sunday Times Rich List
- As Chairman of the Law Society Probate Section [now the Private Client Section] he represented over 3,500 lawyers specialising in private client work across England and Wales in dealings with HMRC, the Law Society, The Press, various major national charities and numerous other interested organisations
- Successful claim of an active service exemption for a deceased client in respect of wounds received 62 years prior to death thereby obtaining a refund of £585,000 of inheritance tax and interest to the deceased’s estate
- Advised the trustees of various trusts holding multi-million pounds worth of assets on a successful application under the Variation of Trusts Act 1958
- Assisted in persuading HMRC that £1.5m worth of trust income received during a ten-year period should still be regarded as income and therefore excluded for an IHT ten-yearly charge
- Acts as a trustee of a large number of private and charitable trusts on behalf of clients
Please note: The experience list above may include examples of work completed prior to joining Keystone Law.
Recognition
“excellent trusts adviser” Legal 500 2013
“ … administratively excellent and the clients really like him” Chambers & Partners 2012
“Incisive” Legal 500 2011
“ … exceptional breadth of knowledge” Legal 500 2009
Law Society Probate Advisory Committee 1996–1997
Law Society Probate Sector Executive National Committee 1997–2008, Chairman 1999–2001
Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners 1993–to date
Career
John qualified as a solicitor in 1986. Prior to moving his practice to Keystone Law in 2013, he worked at the below firms:
- Shakespeares
- Berryman
- Browne Jacobson