Hope Shaw, a sole practice firm in Dorset, is the first firm to be authorised in this way by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) since it became the licensing authority for accountants wanting to do probate two months ago. David Robinson, who runs Hope Shaw, said: ‘It was a logical step to apply to become regulated to do probate work. It is an extra service we can provide to clients. It was natural to use ICAEW as the regulator given that it already regulates the other services I provide as a chartered accountant.'

Sense

Vernon Soare, executive director at the institute, said: ‘Hope Shaw is exactly the type of firm that we wanted to apply to do probate work and why ICAEW became a licensing authority and regulator. It makes sense for practices such as Hope Shaw to provide this extra service when they are already providing inheritance tax and succession planning advice.’ Source: Legal Futures