ARE YOU, OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW, GOING TO BE AFFECTED BY THE UPCOMING WELFARE REFORM?

ABD SOLICITOR SIMON LOFTHOUSE SITS ON PANEL AT

WELFARE REFORM QUESTION TIME

THE PANEL

SIMON LOFTHOUSE - SOLICITOR FROM AWDRY BAILEY AND DOUGLAS SOLICITORS

CLAIRE PERRY, MP

ED COUPE - HOST FOR QUESTION TIME

SARAH CARDY - CEO OF WILTSHIRE CAB

FERGUS ARKLEY - DEVELOPMENT MANAGER FOR CARERS TRUST

IAN PRICE - DWP NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP MANAGER

Question Time took place on Friday 7 December 2012 at Devizes Town Hall to debate issues surrounding the changes to important benefits.  This debate was well attended by people.

Questions were asked by the audience to the expert panel who gave independent answers.

Questions related to;

Housing benefit issues

Carer's requirements

Benefits on-line

Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

Universal Credit

Bedroom tax

and much more...

Simon and the rest of the panel were able to provide the audience with informative and valued advice regarding many changes that will affect carers and the people they care for.

THERE IS HELP AND SUPPORT

for more information go to;       www.carersinwiltshire.co.uk

CHIPPENHAM CHRISTMAS LIGHTS “SWITCH ON” – 23 NOVEMBER 2012

ABD SPONSOR MAIN CHRISTMAS TREE!

Chippenham Christmas lights “Switch on” attracts 1000’s of people to this exciting event and this year was no exception….

Not even the torrential rain that we experienced over the past few days prevented people from turning out in big crowds to see the street entertainers, Christmas stalls, the Wellerhaus Fair Organ, the craft fayre in the Neeld Hall and more!

At about 6.15pm, once the massive crowds of people had gathered outside The Angel Hotel which dates from the 1700’s and is situated in the market place, a surprise entrance was made by Father Christmas climbing from the roof top of the hotel down to the balcony where Chippenham Mayor Andy Phillips with his special guest Rawshan Abdullah who won this year’s Christmas card competition and compere Rosie Hogg were watching in awe and waiting to switch on the Christmas lights.

The main Christmas tree was huge and looked magnificent once lit with lovely tree decorations provided by the children of Redland Primary School and the big ABD banners around the base of the tree.

The ABD team;  Alex David, Tim Hotchkiss, Keshani Douglas, Andrew Douglas , Frances Nash and Cindy Ervine were there on hand to lend support to this exciting event and promote the opening of the new ABD office which will take place during the first quarter of 2013.

For more information about the Christmas light Switch on go to www.chippenham.gov.uk 

BATH RUGBY MATCH DAY SPONSOR

ABD ENTERTAINS…

Saturday, 10 November 2012 was a lovely autumnal day and the likelihood of rain was nil! In other words ABD guests were in for a fantastic day of great food and great rugby…

ABD Partners; Alistair Everett, Andrew Douglas, Roger Chadwick and team had invited their guests to watch Bath Rugby v Newport Gwent Dragons at The Recreation Ground in Bath!

After enjoying a delicious and filling 3 course silver service lunch in the Illustrious Suite, ABD guests were ready to relax in the Wadworths 6X Stand and face the game!

ABD team and their guests enjoying a silver service bite to eat before the match!

THE GAME

Almost ready to begin!

Kick off was at 2.15pm and straight into an exciting game ending in half time score;

Bath Rugby 22 – Newport Gwent Dragons 10. 

MAN OF THE MATCH!
“Fijian winger Semesa Rokoduguni scored 2 tries on his debut and fly-half Tom Heathcote landed 8 kicks out of 8 as Bath made a winning start in the LV=Cup with a 35-15 victory over Newport Gwent Dragons”. Sky Sports.

Bath rugby came out from the second half and continued to control the game, with a great team try in the first five minutes.  The break came on the 72nd minute after fast work from the lineout saw the ball move quickly into the middle of the field where Fijian winger Semesa  Rokoduguni timed his run perfectly , shrugging  off 2 Newport defenders , taking Heathcote’s pass and scoring  under the posts extending the Bath lead to 36-10. With only 4 minutes to go Newport hit back with a consolation try from Dan Evans, but by then the victory was secured for the home side.

(Left to right ;) Michael Joyce, (Cooper and Tanner), Semesa Rokoduguni, (Bath Rugby “Winger”), Roger Chadwick, (ABD Partner), and Ollie Devoto (Bath Rugby Academy “Fly Half”).

THE FINAL SCORE AND MATCH DETAILS
Final Score Bath Rugby 36 – Newport Gwent Dragons 15

BATH
Tries: Rokoduguni (8, 74), Banahan (42)
Cons: Heathcote (8, 43, 75)
Pens: Heathcote (2, 20, 24, 34, 42)

NEWPORT GWENT DRAGONS
Tries: Wardle (5), Evans (77)
Cons: Jones (6)
Pens: Jones (21)

After a fantastic and exciting game, an enticing high tea was served back in the warm Illustrious Suite.

BATH RUGBY FOUNDATION
“The Bath Rugby Foundation aims to inspire, change and improve the lives of young people in the wider community. Established in 2003, Bath Rugby Foundation is an independent charity. It is funded by grants and donations from businesses and individuals. In 2011, 22,500 children and young people in the Bath area benefited from the activities of The Bath Rugby Foundation”.
Bath Rugby.

(Left to right ;) Roger Chadwick (ABD Partner) with Michael Joyce (Cooper and Tanner) and Tom Biggs (Bath Rugby “Wing”). 

SHIRT RAFFLE

ABD party were happy to sponsor this important charity and raised £130. As a result Michael Joyce from Cooper and Tanner Estate Agents won the sponsor raffle prize which was a rugby shirt signed by the Bath Rugby players who had played that day.

For more information go to www.bathrugby.com

ABD WELCOMES CINDY ERVINE

A warm welcome from ABD to Cindy Ervine, who recently joined the firm.  Cindy is a matrimonial solicitor and trained collaborative lawyer who has been based in North Wiltshire for some 19 years.  During that time, she has covered all areas of family law.

Cindy is based at ABD's Royal Wootton Bassett office which she very much enjoys as she finds the town is friendly, vibrant and has lots to offer.  She also covers ABD's Calne office to meet clients and discuss matters relating to family law as and when required.

Cindy is a member of "splitz" which provides support and assistance to families based in Wiltshire and sits on the Chippenham contact centre committee.  She has also been reaccredited in her application for the Law Society Advanced Family Panel with specialisms in domestic violence and children.  As an experienced advocate, Cindy ensures that clients feel supported through the court process.

As well as looking after her 2 children, Cindy enjoys red wine and yoga in her spare time - although NOT together!

To find out more about Cindy and the family law team, click onto "our people", or you can email Cindy relating to any family issues; cindy.ervine@awdrys.co.uk

WINNER OF MARY PORTAS AWARD

RECOMMENDS ABD!



Awdry Bailey and Douglas partner and head of commercial Roger Chadwick received a glowing recommendation from Corina Papadopoulou, winner of the Prestigious Mary Portas "Best for Childrens" Daily Telegraph "Best Small Shops in Britain" award 2012.

KIDSEN - BEAUTIFUL THINGS FOR KIDS

Corina Papadopoulou set up her shop called Kidsen, based in London NW10. Kidsen is the UK's first Scandinavian Store selling colourful quirky design-led children's clothes, shoes, accessories and more!

Mary Portas - Britain's leading retail marketing consultant and broadcaster who is best known for her business related TV shows presented the award to Corina earlier this year at Novikov Restaurant in London's fashionable Mayfair.

ON THE ROAD TO SUCCESS....

"When I first embarked on the difficult journey of setting up my own store on a competitive high street I had no experience and if I had not been fortunate enough to meet Roger Chadwick I am sure it would have been a much more stressful process.  Roger Chadwick's "no nonsense" approach, extensive knowledge and professional manner ensured the process of securing the lease for my retail store was speedy and painless.  Roger is thorough, trustworthy and genuine.  I walked away fully understanding this complex area of my business and with a great end result.

I couldn't recommend Roger Chadwick highly enough and as a matter of fact I have with more happy customers".

Corina Papadopoulou. 

For more information go to www.kidsen.co.uk

AN INTERESTING CASE

WHERE THERE’S A WILL THERE’S A WAY

Two adult children wanted to challenge 4 wills made by their mother shortly before her death in November 2007. Their mother died of brain cancer.  But the two adult children alleged that she lacked capacity, had want of knowledge and approval, and was the subject of undue influence when making these wills…

They decided that they would seek professional advice and help from ABD solicitor Peter Shah who is the firm’s resident partner based at ABD Royal Wootton Bassett offices. Peter specialises in litigious matters and contentious probate.

The main asset of their mother’s estate was the majority shareholding in her private limited company worth several million pounds.

In 1993 she made a will simply leaving her estate to her 4 children. That will would be superseded  by the 4 later  wills  made in September and October 2007 when she left her shares in the estate into a discretionary trust which could have meant the two adult children would receive nothing.

The executors of the estate maintained that these 4 wills were valid.  There was a considerable amount of documentation to take into account including sizeable medical records, the papers of the previous solicitors who had drafted the wills, and the wills themselves which were complex documents.  What made matters worse was that one of the executors was their mother’s husband (not their father) who had benefited from a transfer of shares shortly before his wife died at a significant undervalue.

Having maintained the stance that there were no concessions, mediation took place in May 2010 to see if a settlement could be reached.  Some progress on that front was made but then the other side withdrew from the mediation process. A report was obtained from an Old Age Consultant Psychiatrist to comment on the Deceased’s state of mind when she made the wills which were the subject matter of legal challenge.  Whilst his report was not unequivocal it provided some useful pointers when court proceedings were finally issued in the High Court at the end of 2010. A defence was served by the other side, and directions for the conduct of the case were made whereby it was set down for Trial for 19 days to be heard in April.

However, at the end of 2011 after 4 years wrangling, the other side indicated that they would not contest the claim being brought by the two adult children which meant that the 2007 wills were set aside and subsequently the 1993 admitted to probate.

Peter fought a hard legal battle on behalf of his clients and, whatever the reasons, the other side had to concede the claim and the actions of the two adult children were wholly justified with thanks to Peter.

ABD TAKES PART IN...

THE WORLDS BIGGEST COFFEE MORNING – MACMILLAN CANCER SUPPORT.

Awdry Bailey and Douglas Solicitors took part in the Worlds Biggest Coffee Morning last Friday, 28 September 2012 in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. The total raised including donations and gift aid amounted to over £300.

Macmillan Cancer Support is a charity registered organisation, who has helped to improve the lives of people affected by cancer in assisting with emotional, financial and practical support.  Macmillan Cancer Support raise money through coffee mornings, sponsored events, marathons, and much more…

COFFEE MORNINGS TOOK PLACE ALL OVER THE UK!

ABD clients and local business people were invited to enjoy coffee, cakes and a chat at ABD’s Marlborough Office on the Marlborough Business Park organised by ABD Solicitor Simon Lofthouse. Guests also included Mayor of Marlborough Councillor Edwina Fogg, with her husband Nick who is the town’s jazz festival organiser, and Claire Perry MP.

Coffee, cake and chat!


Photo above; ABD Partner Andrew Douglas greets Mayor of Marlborough Councillor Edwina Fogg with her husband Nick.

Photo above left; Claire Perry MP with ABD Solicitor Simon Lofthouse.

Photo above right; Local business people and clients enjoying coffee and cakes.

 













Photo above; ABD Solicitor Simon Lofthouse holding cakes which were donated from Haydens Bakery, Devizes. 

Many thanks to the suppliers who also helped with this event...

The coffee was supplied by Tesco’s in Marlborough, cakes were supplied by Haydens Bakery in Devizes, and cups were supplied by Huhtamaki based in Gosport.

Did you know?

In 1911, a young man called Douglas Macmillan saw his father die of cancer.  His father’s pain and suffering upset Douglas so much that he founded the ‘Society for the Prevention and Relief of Cancer’.

He did this because he wanted advice and information to be provided to all people who suffered with cancer, he wanted homes for patients at low or no cost, and voluntary nurses to attend to patients in their own homes.

Today, much of his legacy lives on. Macmillan is still a source of support for people living with cancer today and is a force for improving cancer care. Last year Macmillan Cancer Support celebrated their 100th birthday.

Did you know?

The first National World’s Biggest Coffee Morning took place in 1991 when approx 2,600 people registered to hold coffee mornings across the country. Since then it has raised over £60 million in total for Macmillan Cancer Support.

For more information, or if you would like to make a donation - www.coffee.macmillan.org.uk/donate.