Charlotte Macdonald

Charlotte (TEP) is a consultant associate solicitor in Stone King's international and cross border succession team dealing exclusively with work which includes international and cross-border element.

Charlotte joined the firm as a trainee in 2013 before qualifying as a solicitor in 2015 and beginning work in her specialist area of work.

Charlotte brings to Stone King a wealth of non-legal experience. She completed her undergraduate degree in International Relations, before (as a Canadian qualified snowboarding instructor and climbing enthusiast) working abroad in the snow sports industry for several years.

Charlotte’s recent work has included the following:

• Preparing wills for clients with UK assets including those including life interest and discretionary trusts.

• Preparing wills to cover certain overseas jurisdictions.

• Reviewing non-English wills to ensure that they ‘dovetail’ with the

• English wills that Charlotte has prepared her clients in relation to scope, revocation and planning goals.

• Providing detailed cross-border estate planning advice – to ensure that her clients are aware of how the succession and tax rules in multiple jurisdictions interact with each other.

• Providing lifetime gifting advice to clients in relation to UK gifting and the impact of overseas gifting on their UK tax position in relation to both inheritance tax and capital gains tax.

• Providing analysis of domicile for inheritance tax purposes for use with HMRC.

• Reviewing overseas trust structures and advising clients on how these will likely be viewed by HMRC.

• Drafting, registering and advising on the content of Lasting Powers of Attorney.

• Providing advice on relevant double taxation agreements following the sale of overseas property.

• Administering estates within the UK:

• • Drafting and submitting inheritance tax returns to HMRC, including those with business assets and overseas assets

  • Providing advice to clients throughout the estate administration process

  • Obtaining grants of probate

  • Providing advice on and drafting deeds of variation (as appropriate)

  • Drafting deeds of appropriation (where necessary)

  • Preparing estate accounts

• Assisting with the estate administration of overseas estates:

• • Liaising with overseas lawyers

  • Reviewing wills as to their validity and applicability in overseas jurisdictions, including consideration of whether the EU succession regulation is relevant

  • Advising on and applying various overseas double taxation treaties to inheritance taxation

  • Providing affidavits/statements of English law for overseas lawyers

• Arranging for the resealing of non-English grants of probate with the Probate Registry.

• Providing advice to charity clients and school clients who are beneficiaries to multi-jurisdictional estates and individual overseas legacies.

• Providing advice to other firms of solicitors on international elements of their work including estate planning and estate administration.

Charlotte is full member of STEP having passed the majority of her advanced certificates with a distinction pass mark – including the specialist advance certificate in Cross-Border Estates.

Charlotte has two undergraduate degrees, International Relations Bsc (2:1 University of Plymouth) and Law LLB (2:1 University of Law). Charlotte completed her Legal Practice Course in 2012 with distinction.