A NEW Cheshire organisation for professionals involved in will-writing or estate planning has been launched.
Solicitors, accountants, financial advisers and will-writers from across the county have come together to form a new branch of the international professional body, The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).
And at their second session they elected an inaugural committee with representatives from different disciplines across the county to take the group forward. Leading the new STEP Cheshire chapter as chairman is Stephen Lawson, a specialist in contentious probate and a partner in the law firm Forshaws, Davies Ridgway, based in Frodsham.
Supporting him as secretary is solicitor Louise Eccleston, a partner at Walker Smith Way in Chester; treasurer is Northwich accountant Chris Smith of Howard Worth; event co-ordinator is Macclesfield solicitor Helen Kelly from SAS Daniels and Kevin Blyth, a banker in the estates department of NatWest Bank in Chester.
Stephen Lawson said: “We are delighted this new Cheshire STEP chapter has generated such an enormous amount of interest. The inaugural meeting in September was so popular, we had to move to a larger venue just to accommodate all the interested delegates.
“There is definitely a need for accreditation of professional people providing a service in wills and trusts to the public. The problem of disreputable will-writers has been highlighted in the media recently, and the public need to know who they can trust.
“As well as accreditation and education, STEP Cheshire will also offer cross-profession networking, support and development opportunities and set high standards of professional service.”
For more information visit the website www.step.org or phone 0207 340 0500.
