TOLLERS Solicitors are leading providers of legal advice and assistance in the ever-growing field of Elderly and Vulnerable Client Law. Tollers identified a need at an early stage for a unique and specialist department to be established in order to service the public with all of their potential care enquiries and with all aspects of Court of Protection proceedings.
Tollers’ Elderly and Vulnerable Client Unit (EVCU) was created in early 2013 as a separate and distinct team within the firm’s Trusts and Estates Department. The EVCU was created to provide expert advice in regard to the growing problems faced by an ageing population, and the team continues to expand as the demand for support in this area of law continues to grow.
Tollers’ specialist team primarily tackles legal issues surrounding vulnerability through incapacity. This includes drawing up documents which provide people with the ability to make decisions for their loved ones in case of future incapacity (such as Lasting Powers of Attorney) or dealing with those who do not have the ability to manage and make decisions regarding their own financial affairs. Incapacity can result from any number of factors, including medical issues or conditions suffered from birth, such as general learning difficulties or autism, or from an accident which results in a brain injury or an injury caused during birth, or as a symptom of an illness such as dementia or stroke.
Each year, Tollers Solicitors host a full-day conference aimed at a range of professionals who work with the elderly and vulnerable. Tollers are delighted to announce that this year it is to be held at the Kettering Park Hotel in Kettering on Thursday, 7 March. The audience is often made up of social workers, charities, health professionals, financial advisors and others. Its purpose is to provide expert information and updates regarding this complex and ever-changing area of practice.
This year’s focus is Navigating the Care Funding Maze: Issues and Challenges and will mark Tollers’ fifth annual Elderly and Vulnerable Client Conference.
The annual conference features a number of guest speakers on a variety of topics, as well as speakers from within the firm itself and this year is no different. The 2019 conference will cover the role of professional attorneys and deputies in protecting clients’ money and ensuring the money is invested appropriately for them; an in-depth look at NHS Continuing Healthcare funding, appeals and challenges and an overview of local authority funding calculations, and the importance of seeking appropriate financial advice.
Tonina Ashby, head of the EVCU team based in Tollers’ head office in Northampton, said: “It remains an important part of our role as leaders in this field to deliver a high-quality and informative conference on such an important area of law. The topics covered by us in the EVCU are incredibly sensitive and important and are likely to touch all of us at some point in our lives. Whilst the team is based in the Northampton office, we are proud to be able to support people in all areas throughout Northamptonshire, Rutland, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire.”
The EVCU team is made up of professionals with a wide variety of skills and also has the benefit of Panel Deputy Martin Hill and Professional Deputy Barry Rogers. As a Court of Protection appointed Panel Deputy, Martin is one of only nine Panel Deputies in the West Midlands and due to their specialist team and expertise, Tollers have had an elected Panel Deputy member since the inception of the Court Panel.
Tonina and the EVCU team can assist with all applications to the Court of Protection including deputyship applications, trustee applications, statutory wills and gifting. They also deal with queries about care funding and challenges to local authority funding and the management of client financial affairs under Deputyship Orders or Lasting Powers of Attorney.
The annual Tollers EVCU conference will be held on Thursday 7 March 2019 at the Kettering Park Hotel in Kettering, spaces are still available at a discounted rate for Business Times readers: Simply quote BTDIS03.
To secure your place on this insightful and informative conference, call Karen Nicholson on 01604 258558 or email
