A PARTNER from law firm Hewitsons’ Private Wealth team has gained a prestigious qualification in cross-border estate planning and succession.
Carolyn Bagley TEP, from the firm’s Milton Keynes and Northampton offices, passed the STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners) Advanced Certificate in Cross-Border Estates with Distinction.
The certificate demonstrates her expertise in dealing with matters in English law as affected by tax, trusts, estates, wills and powers of attorney within civil, common and Sharia law systems from various jurisdictions.
Carolyn said: “I’m very pleased to have achieved this specialist certificate. The course has enhanced my knowledge and will help me to continue providing the best possible advice to clients who have international concerns to consider.
“Many clients now have foreign aspects to their lives, whether it’s their parents’ country of origin or owning an asset abroad, and they do not realise the consequences it can have, from taxation to invalidity of part of their wills. They need a solicitor who is aware of the implications.”
The certificate, which is held by relatively few people worldwide, is a collaboration between STEP – the global professional association for practitioners specialising in family inheritance and succession planning – and training provider CLT International.
Madeleine Jenness, Senior Manager of Professional Development at STEP, said: “We’re delighted to hear of Carolyn’s success. All of our exams are challenging, so she has done especially well to achieve a distinction. We wish her all the best in her future career.”
Carolyn joined Hewitsons in 2010, having previously spent 25 years with a Top 25 law firm.
She advises individuals, including business owners and trustees, on the full range of Private Wealth matters, covering tax, trusts, estates, wills and powers of attorney.
In addition to her latest qualification, Carolyn is a full STEP member, a member of the Law Society’s Private Client Section and a past president of both the Northamptonshire Law Society and the Northamptonshire Junior Chamber. As a full STEP member, Carolyn is entitled to use the prestigious TEP designation.
In the 2019 Chambers & Partners and Legal 500 legal guides, she is named as a Notable Practitioner and a Recommended Lawyer, respectively.
For more information visit www.hewitsons.com
