Solicitor’s specialist qualification reinforces firm’s wills and probate expertise

A leading York law firm has reinforced the confidence of clients in its will and probate team with all five specialist solicitors now appointed to the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).

Emma Fawke, who qualified as a solicitor in 2011, has become a full member of STEP after successfully passing her exams and is now a qualified Trusts and Estates Practitioner (TEP) with Rollits LLP, which has offices in Hull and York.

As a specialist in wills, estate planning, lasting powers of attorney and Court of Protection matters in addition to probate and administration of estates Emma is also a member of Solicitors for the Elderly (SFE), which she achieved in 2019. SFE is a national association of independent lawyers who specialise in legal services for older and vulnerable people.

She said: “The whole private capital team of five lawyers across our two offices now have STEP membership, which is a kite mark for what we do. It indicates the knowledge and experience we all have in dealing with private client matters.”

Commenting on Emma’s success, John Lane, head of Rollits Private Capital Department, said: “We are all extremely proud of Emma’s achievement. She has worked very hard to complete her exams alongside her day-to-day work and in the midst of a pandemic and that hard work has paid off. We congratulate her on her STEP qualification.”

The department’s work includes raising awareness of the importance of having a will, and that process is supported every year by the Make a Will Fortnight.

Emma said: “In addition to generating funds for our local Hospice it’s also about raising awareness of the importance of having a proper will, which is massive in terms of making sure a person’s estate is handled in line with their wishes and because it enables you to identify who has the responsibility for handling the estate immediately.

“It makes sense to get a properly drawn up will in the first place rather than have to pay substantial fees to rectify something afterwards.”