Newsletter January 2011

Implications of the changes in the VAT rate from 4 January 2011

Claire Hardwick, Bar Department

Generally fees raised by you on or after 4 January 2011 will be liable to VAT at 20%.  However for cases completed before that date you can declare VAT at 17.5%.

Similarly, if a fee raised after or on 4 January 2011 includes services partly performed while the 17.5% VAT rate applied, you can apportion your fees by charging VAT at 17.5% on the work done up to 3 January 2011 and 20% on the remainder. You will have to be able to demonstrate that the apportionment between the two amounts fairly reflects the work carried out in each period.

If you use the VAT flat rate scheme, the rate increased on 4 January from 13% to 14.5%. You must use the new rate for receipts on or after 4 January. You cannot use the old rate for services performed before that date.

Have you sent us all of the information we need for your tax return?

Andrew Hood, Bar Department Manager

We have a small number of clients who still haven’t sent us all of the information we need in order to be able to complete their tax returns.  31 January is fast approaching and so we need all outstanding information as a matter of urgency. Please contact a member of the bar team if you are uncertain of what is required by email at counsel@cassons.co.uk or call 0845 337 9409.

London presence for Cassons for Counsel

We are delighted to announce that Cassons for Counsel now has a presence in London. Due to our increasing numbers of London-based barrister clients we now have facilities at 218 Strand, London. It is easier for our barrister clients who prefer to meet us away from chambers and also for those who wish to drop off their invoices / other paperwork. Appointments should still be made in the usual way via 0845 337 9409.

Tax saving strategies for barristers

Ashley Hayman (Senior Partner) reviews several tax strategies that will work for barristers at different stages of their careers. This article was originally printed in the November 2010 edition of Counsel magazine’s Money Matters. 
This article is reproduced with their kind permission.

There are many strategies available but you need to take specialist advice to see if one will work for you to understand the full implications. To discuss these or any other tax strategies please contact us by email at counsel@cassons.co.uk or call 0845 337 9409.

Wealth planning reviews

John Davenport, Pensions Manager

Have you had your wealth planning review with a member of the Cassons team? If you are an existing client and want to arrange a review of the planning of your wealth, to include your pension provision, critical illness insurance, investments and tax planning, please contact us by email at counsel@cassons.co.uk or call 0845 337 9409.

Special invitation to Kintish networking webinar

We are delighted to extend to you an invitation from Will Kintish to attend a webinar from the comfort of your own office on Monday 31 January 2011 at 6pm. The session is entitled ‘The Secrets of Great Networkers’ and will last for 45 minutes. Please note that this webinar is completely free of charge!

In this informative and entertaining webinar, Will shows you what it takes to be a really great networker. He will regale with you the ten personality traits, qualities and skills required to ensure the next time you attend a business event you too are part of the great networking community.

Will Kintish is well known in the bar community having spoken twice at annual conferences at the Institute of Barristers’ Clerks as well as working with a number of chambers across the country.

Click here to enrol or email Ann Davies at ann@kintish.co.uk or call on 0161 773 3727 for more information.

Cassons scoop top accountancy award!

It is with a huge amount of pride and delight that we announce that we have once again been awarded the accolade of Accountancy Firm of the Year by the North West Society of Chartered Accountants. It was a great achievement to be shortlisted; to win, however, is just magnificent.

The award for Accountancy Firm of the Year focused on the nominees’ unique way of doing business, their ability to respond to challenging times and, most importantly, their customer service record with particular emphasis on how they have been actively helping their clients through the recent recession.

Napthens Solicitors sponsored the category and Keith Melling, partner at the firm, presented the award on the night. He particularly applauded the firm for expanding our services to provide tailor-made packages for barristers through our Cassons for Counsel website

He said: “The winner has continued to develop – going the extra mile for their clients. They invest in their staff and use technology to their best advantage to continue the development of new niche markets.”

We’re thrilled to have won this award for the second successive year and it is testament to the continued hard work and dedication of our staff, who genuinely do go the ‘extra mile’ every day to help our clients. We are particularly delighted that the judges recognised our efforts to expand our business into more specialised fields and embrace new technology during a very difficult economic climate.

We’d like to thank especially those clients of the firm who were invited to give a testimonial for our submission for the award. Without doubt their kind words influenced the judges’ decision. We thank all of our clients and friends for their unfailing support.

The Bar Handbook 2010-11

Tony Reynolds, Partner and Head of Bar Department

I have just reviewed my copy of the recently issued Bar Handbook for 2010-11.  At 1900 pages it is a hefty tome but is packed with practical guidance and best practice for those at the bar.

There continues to be much change in the legal services market place and advice and guidance around the changes to the Code of Conduct are included as well as the new business arrangements following the Legal Services Act 2007.

The Bar Council’s comprehensive “Practice Management Guidelines” are reproduced in full in the Handbook and contain practical forms and checklists that can be adopted to improve the workings of a barristers’ practice.

I commend the handbook as a source of reference for anyone in practice at the bar or for that matter anyone else supporting those at the bar.

Protect your income!

Steven Greenwood, Wealth Planning Partner

Have you fully considered what would happen to your financial position if you were unable to work?

If you are a barrister in practice your earnings depend entirely on your being able to work. You have no staff to earn money for you while you are off work.  Now take into account that state benefits can be as little as £68.95 per week. How would you manage? That is why practising barristers really need income protection insurance.

The concept of income protection insurance is straightforward. You set up a policy to run to your intended retirement age. If illness or injury prevents you from earning an income, the policy pays you a replacement income. The insurance does not replace your whole income. (The insurance companies want you to have some incentive to go back to work.) Most policies will pay about 50% of your income, less the amount of any state benefits.

Of course, the cash does not dry up on your first day off work. You will be collecting your aged debt for several months. And you may well have some savings. So you can probably afford not to claim for several months. The longer this pre-benefit period, the cheaper the premium. We generally recommend 6 months.

A moment’s thought will tell you that an income level that is manageable now will become unmanageable in time due to inflation. So you really must have an index-linked policy. Of course it costs more. But otherwise you’re just kidding yourself. For a male in his early twenties, an index-linked policy with £50,000 annual benefit could cost less than £40 per month. And for women the same policy could cost over £60 per month.  It’s not discrimination. It’s just that women are statistically more likely to suffer major illness than men and therefore have an even greater need of insurance.

There are two other ways to kid yourself. (Or for an insurance salesman to kid you!) Beware policies with premiums that are called reviewable or renewable. “Reviewable” means that if the insurance company decides to increase its premiums, for whatever reason, it can increase your premiums too. “Renewable” means that you can renew the policy each year but as you get older so the premium keeps rising. You get a low premium to start off with – but you’ve just bought an entry ticket to a treadmill.

These are just a few of the wrinkles. There are many more. You should always take good, independent professional advice. 

If you would like to discuss any of these issues in more detail with us please contact us by email at counsel@cassons.co.uk or call 0845 337 9409.

Please note

This newsletter is for general guidance only. You should not rely on it without taking individual advice based on the full facts of your case. Information given is correct at the time of publication.