PS magazine

PS is distributed six times per year to members, keeping them up-to-date on pertinent legal and practical issues via bulletins, in-depth articles, case reports and guidance.

It is aimed at solicitors working in the fields of wills, financial planning, trusts, tax planning, Court of Protection, care planning and estate administration.

Join the Section and receive a free copy of the magazine and online access to searchable past and present issues. People ineligible for Section membership can receive hard-copies of the journal for £90 per year by subscribing online or downloading an application form. [PDF 24KB]

Find out more about contributing to or advertising in PS

Members: search the magazine's content

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CPD Quiz

PS now comes with up to 12 hours' free CPD points each year, through a 15-question quiz on each edition's content. The quiz is quick and user-friendly and will save members time and money, and is accessible via the CPD centre.

To complete the quiz:

• First, register with the CPD centre and log in today at www.lawsociety.org.uk/cpdcentre.  (NB Registration requires setting a new user name and password as these details do not automatically carry over from Private Client site login.)
• Then, select Private Client CPD quiz from the list of Law Society Online Learning.
• If you leave the test mid-way through completion, or your session expires, you will need to click on Record on the CPD toolbar at the top of the page (NB not the browser toolbar) to return to the quiz and for more details on the status of completion.  Once there, click on the quiz name.  This will return a 'View Activity Details' page.  Scroll down the page to where it says 'Online assessment' and click on the 'Launch' button underneath to return to the quiz.

In order to claim your CPD hours you must achieve a pass mark of 87% or answer 13 out of 15 questions correctly. Your answers will be marked online as soon as you submit them. You can revisit the assessment as often as you like before the next edition of the magazine is released. However, think carefully before submitting your answers as you only have one attempt in which to complete the quiz.

If you would like to contest this mark please contact Sections Editorial Assistant, Leila Zerai, on leila.zerai@lawsociety.org.uk; 020 7316 5522

For all technical queries please contact the CPD Centre on 0207 320 5841 or via email to cpdcentre@lawsociety.org.uk

This issue contains the following subjects:

Contents and welcome Comment: Panic room (LPAs) Bulletin (news and latest updates) Winder/spring collection (PS annual regional seminars programme) Interview: Preparation, practice, probate (recruitment and training courses) The road less travelled (recruitment, training and education) Protecting goals (choice of agricultural tenancy) The American way (US property taxes payable upon death) Back to basics #1 (lasting powers of attorney) Age old issue (care homes and funding) Data safety dance (mangement and protection of data) Access all areas (digitisation process of GRO records) Looking back (former Chair of Wills and Equity Committee) Seven essential virtues (avenues to success) Paying one's dues (financial adviser's duty of care) Books (recent releases from Law Society Publishing) FAQs (provided by Law Society's Practice Advice Service)

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This issue contains the following subjects:

Cover page Contents and welcome All change (comment from the chair) Bulletin (news and latest updates from the Section) Read the small print (professional indemnity insurers) Clear and present danger (anti-money laundering) The clock is ticking (trusts) Avoiding conflicts (duties of confidentiality and disclosure) Because you're worth it (profitable non-contentious work) The American Way (US property in wills) Heritage protection (revealing tax breaks) Making a drama out of a case (interview - law on TV) Fair treatment for all (financial services companies and consumers) Picking up the pieces (HIPs) Stars of the show (genealogy searches and wills) I spy with my little eye (IT, monitoring employees) Books (Law Society Publishing reviews) Probate FAQs (SRA and Code of Conduct)

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This issue contains the following subjects:

Contents and Chair's welcome Reflections (comments from the Chair) Opening doors (changes to the legal profession) Cases in Point (probate recent developments) Inherent problems (Private International law) All Change (LPAs, EPAs, and the Court of Protection) Costly code (cost orders and the Code of Conduct) Drinks reception and gala dinner (photo spread) Taxing wills (Inheritance Tax Act, trusts and wills) Profit eater from the Black Lagoon (improving financial performace) At your discretion (discretionary orders) A curious creature (Court of Protection) Life after death (dealing with bereaved clients) Brave new world (IT) Getting to grips (changes in individual captial tax planning) Tour de force (conference review and new members)

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This issue contains the following subjects:

Contents and welcome From the Committee and Bulletin (news and latest updates from the Section) Avoiding conflicts (conflicts of interest rules) Pensions pinching: understanding the fundamentals (pensions, IHT, crystallisations and options) Shambolic back down (HIPs) Italian law of succession (Italian inheritances and wills) A matter of trust (issues for cohabiting couples) Business continuity - are you at risk? (post-disaster business continuity) Snakes and ladders (IHT threshold impact on average households) Wasted writings (how to lose legalese) Getting down to the nitty gritty (probate recruitment crisis) Probate FAQs and About the Probate Section

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This issue contains the following subjects:

Contents Bulletin (From the Chair, News and latest updates from the Section) Comment: Back to the trenches (looking back at the Executive Committee) Budget 2007 - how the changes affect you For the benefit of the children (IHT and taxation of trusts upon death of a child) A question of trust (trusteeship and conflict of interest) The Who, the where and the how (applied genealogy in estate administration) French law adapts to social revolution (changes to law of succession and inheritance) The Arnander case and the HMRC attack onthe two-year rule Technology trio (Law 2007 exhibition and conference) Probate surgery (valuation pitfalls, about the Section)

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This issue contains the following subjects:

Contents Bulletin: From the Chair, News and Updates Comment: The green alternative (online training) Survival of the fittest (consumer-focused reforms) Putting your trust in the courts (financial settlements on divorce) Tricks of the trade (genealogists in estate administration) On being a farmer (Agricultural Holdings Act 1986) Keeping land in the family: the French solution (French Civil Code) Code of conduct (Solicitors' Code of Conduct) Outsourcing - traps for the unwary (outsourcing IT facilities) Coping with grief (dealing with clients) Probate FAQs (French estate administration)

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This issue contains the following subjects:

Welcome Bulletin (From the chair, Breathing new life into probate, Mental Capacity Act guidance, Library online, Unclaimed asset scheme) The challenge ahead (comment) Brits abroad: dealing with intestacy in Spain Probate recruitment - a perennial problem IHT update - what you need to know Buried treasure (records preservation) Where there's a will, there may not always be a way (EU directive on money laundering) Rural land and property: the sting in the tale (Shoot Project Team tour) IT solutions on show (2007 Legal IT Show) Probate FAQs (rural land problems)

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This issue contains the following subjects:

Bulletin Comment (Times they are a-changing) Protecting personal injury awards (trusts) Brits abroad: reigning in Spain (probate abroad) Viva Espana! (practising law abroad) The new IHT regime: what you need to know High noon down on the farm? (Antrobus 2) Still overcoming Gift with Reservation of Benefit A killer's legacy (forfeiture) Making things easier? (IT) A job for the experts (valuing) Probate FAQs

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This issue contains the following subjects:

Bulletin Comment (Behind the scenes) The Mental Capacity Act 2005 - a basic guide Assessing mental capacity: a legal perspective (Mental Capacity Act) Determining capacity: curiouser and curiouser (Mental Capacity Act) Acting in a client's best interests (Mental Capacity Act) The new framework for statutory wills (Mental Capacity Act) Enduring Powers of Attorney - how they will work (Mental Capacity Act) Are the cracks appearing already? (Mental Capacity Act) The new fee structure - making it work (OPG and Court of Protection)

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