Partner

Ross Brown

Ross is a Partner within the firm’s Wills, Estates and Succession Planning department. He completed his traineeship with BTO in 2009 and returned to the firm in 2012 to specialise in Wills, Trusts, Tax Planning and Estates.

Ross is “quick to understand clients’ situations” and tailors his advice for every client in a “sensible, sensitive and appropriate way” (Legal 500). He has a great deal of experience in advising individuals on inheritance tax planning and asset and family protection through the drafting of Wills and Trusts. He is able to advise on the various options open to clients in terms of lifetime tax and estate planning.

Ross has a particular interest in clients with business interests and the options open to them in terms when outlining their succession plan. He is able to offer practical and pragmatic advise on the various relevant factors to take into account and the tax implications when clients are thinking of selling the business or passing it on for the benefit of future generations.

Ross also deals with all aspects of the administration of both testate and intestate estates from submitting applications for Confirmation to the ingathering and distribution of assets to the beneficiaries and production of executry accounts. He is able to advise on the options open to beneficiaries in terms of the variation of estates. In addition to this, Ross advises executors and beneficiaries on Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Income Tax, and in particular the possible tax planning options open to them.

Ross also has an interest in adults with incapacity matters. He is well versed in the drafting and administration of Powers of Attorney, and often advises both grantors and Attorneys as to their options, rights and responsibilities. He also has experience in dealing with Guardianship matters, including lodging applications with the court and subsequent guardianship administration.

Ross approaches matters in a compassionate and empathetic way, putting his clients at ease from the point of the initial meeting onwards. He works hard to achieve the best and most suitable outcome for the particular individual and/or their family.

Ross is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), having been awarded the STEP Diploma in Trusts and Estates (Scotland) with distinction. STEP is the worldwide professional association for practitioners dealing with family inheritance and succession planning.

After Hours

Swimming, squash, hill-walking and brewing his own beer.

Partner

Alastair J D Hope

Partner

Gregor Mitchell

Gregor is a Partner in our Tax Planning, Wills and Estates team in Edinburgh.

A recognised expert in private client law, with thirty years of experience, Gregor works closely with private individuals, advising them on their personal and succession needs.

He represents a variety of clients, including landowners, entrepreneurs, later life clients and trusts. Gregor is particularly well known for providing a personalised service to his entrepreneur, landowner and business clients, to mitigate succession disputes, guide them in relation to tax and planning matters and satisfy their unique requirements.

Throughout his career, Gregor has enjoyed developing longstanding relationships with his clients and working closely with several generations of families to ensure them of long-term tax and succession benefits. His expertise includes drafting complex Wills and Powers of Attorney.

Gregor has also been involved in the establishment of high-profile charitable trusts and Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation’s on behalf of various individuals and organisations.

Legal Director

Donna Brennan

Donna is a Legal Director in our BTO Personal team, with a wealth of experience in Succession Planning, Asset Protection, preparation of tax efficient Wills, mitigation of Inheritance Tax, administration of estates, including contentious and complex matters, creation and management of trusts, and later life advice, including advice in relation to long term care, incapacity issues, guardianships and powers of attorney.

During the course of her career, Donna has led and established teams both as a Partner in a law firm and as a Senior Manager for a firm of accountants, where she managed a large team providing trust and executry services on behalf of leading banks.

She is recognised by Legal 500 as a key solicitor in her field. She is also a member of the Society of Trust and Estates Practitioners, being one of the first two solicitors in Scotland to attain membership after entrance qualifications were introduced. Whilst not providing financial advice in her current role, she also held an Investment Advice Certificate from the Securities Institute.

Donna has been asked to contribute on several occasions to press and media coverage of issues of concern to families and individuals including long term care, tax, trusts and powers of attorney.

Donna enjoys taking the time to fully explore the issues that matter to her clients, providing empathy, insight and practical solutions to guide them through important and often difficult stages of life. Her calm and considerate approach is appreciated by clients and colleagues alike.

Senior Associate

Morag Gibb

Morag is a highly regarded Private Client solicitor with almost 30 years of experience in this area of law. Morag tutors in the Advanced Private Client course in the Diploma of Legal Practice at Strathclyde University.

Her areas of expertise are the preparation of Wills, the administration of simple and complex Executries, Inheritance Tax Planning and Powers of Attorney.

Recognised for her approachability, understanding and expertise her clients appreciate her support and advice at times when they are often at their most vulnerable, having lost close family members, or when establishing legal structures for the distribution of family wealth or the future care of loved ones.

Associate

Bruce Battersby

Bruce is a private client specialist who helps his clients find solutions to their succession, inheritance tax and capital gains tax issues.

Bruce has considerable experience acting for private clients, business owners and local authorities in relation to will drafting, administration of trusts and estates and business succession planning. He believes that the client and their objectives are at the very heart of things. Bruce offers clear and pragmatic advice to help our clients achieve those objectives.

Clients regularly consult Bruce in relation to funding of care for the elderly. Those seeking advice may be at the point of admission to care or they may wish to obtain advice on behalf of a family member. Bruce is also regularly consulted on these matters by other practitioners and has spoken widely on this area at legal and other conferences.

Bruce is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and of the Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT). He is also a part-time tutor on the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice at the University of Glasgow

Associate

Emma Donaldson

Emma joined BTO in January 2008 and specialises in wills, tax planning, trusts and estates.

She regularly deals with individuals in assessing their own particular family circumstances and advising them on how a will can be tailored to their needs, by including, for example, specialist trust provision for younger or disabled beneficiaries. She is experienced in drafting wills that provide for the establishment of charitable trusts. Emma advises clients on Inheritance Tax issues and how they may best be managed by lifetime tax planning.

Emma specialises in the drafting of trusts. She has experience in drafting liferent trusts, discretionary trusts, trusts for disabled persons and pilot trusts. She advises clients on the use of trusts to protect assets and provide for vulnerable family members, both during lifetime and on death.

She advises Trustees on their duties and responsibilities in relation to trust administration and a trust’s liability to Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Income Tax. She has assisted Trustees in the administration of complex trust provisions and in particular in the winding up of a trust with an international settlor and a defunct charitable beneficiary.

Emma also advises clients on adult incapacity issues, Powers of Attorney and Guardianship Orders. She has advised a further education college when a conflict arose between an Adult’s rights and their Attorney’s duties and responsibilities. She assists clients in the administration of their day to day financial affairs and liaises with stockbrokers, accountants and independent financial advisors.

Emma handles all aspects of estate administration, including preparation and submission of applications for Confirmation to the Sheriff Courts and the ingathering and distribution of assets. She is experienced in liaising with Trustees and charities as estate beneficiaries. She advises on Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Income Tax as they apply to estates and ensures that the necessary returns are submitted to HM Revenue and Customs.

She is a full member of STEP, having completed the STEP diploma in 2015. Emma is also a tutor on the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice’s private client course at the University of Glasgow.

Senior Solicitor

Katie Coates

Katie is a Senior Solicitor in the firm’s Private Client Team. Katie principally advises private individuals and their families on how best to achieve their aims in their personal affairs, including the preparation of Wills, Trusts and Powers of Attorney.

Katie has a vast experience in executry administration for both testate and intestate estates. She also has a depth of knowledge in dealing with the winding up of high value estates subject to Inheritance Tax, including dealing with the various aspects of reporting to HMRC which are mandatory in such estates. Katie can advise on the options open to beneficiaries in terms of the variation of estates and future planning for the passing of wealth on to the next generations.

In addition to this, Katie advises clients on Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Income Tax, and in particular the possible estate planning options open to them.

Katie also has a wide experience in adults with incapacity matters, including the administration of Powers of Attorney, and the application and administration of Guardianship orders. In addition, she also prepares professional court reports necessary to accompany financial guardianship applications.

Katie is a Notary Public and a full member of the Society for Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), having completed her Diploma in 2017.

Senior Solicitor

Sara Albizzati

Sara is a Senior Solicitor and Notary Public within our Private Client Team in Edinburgh.

Sara is experienced in dealing with executry administration for both testate and intestate estates. Sara can advise on all aspects of estate administration including filing of tax and court forms, deeds of variation and Inheritance Tax.

Sara is personable with clients and is recognised for her ability to explain complex legal matters in a simple way. She understands how daunting it can be to deal with an estate after the loss of a loved one and she receives praise for her empathy and commitment to help families when they are at their most vulnerable.

Sara’s expertise also includes Powers of Attorney, Wills, asset and family protection, and Inheritance Tax planning. Sara had a close relationship with her grandparents and enjoys working closely with elderly clients. She is also experienced in dealing with residential conveyancing matters.

As a native Italian, Sara can speak Italian and she is able to assist Italian individuals and businesses.

Senior Solicitor

Gillian McClearn

Gillian is based in BTO’s Helensburgh office. She principally advises private individuals and their families on how best to achieve their aims in their personal affairs, including the preparation of Wills, Trusts and Powers of Attorney.

She deals regularly with individuals in assessing their own particular family circumstances and advising them on how a will can be tailored to their needs, by including, for example, specialist trust provision for younger or disabled beneficiaries.

Gillian also has an interest in working with adults with incapacity matters. She is experienced in the drafting of Powers of Attorney and often advises both grantors and Attorneys as to their options, rights and responsibilities.

Senior Solicitor

David White

David is a Solicitor and Notary Public within the Private Client department based in Glasgow.

David joined the firm as a Trainee Solicitor in September 2016 after graduating from Strathclyde University. He spent the majority of his traineeship within the Private Client department and has thus qualified into the department already having dealt with a wide variety of issues.

David deals with all aspects of the administration of estates including assisting family and friends with the registration of a death, submitting the necessary application for Confirmation to the court and the ingathering and distribution of assets to the beneficiaries. During his traineeship, David also spent 6 months in the Property department and now works closely with them in dealing with property belonging to the deceased. He also advises executors on all tax implications including Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Income Tax.

Linked to this, David has experience working with individuals and advising them on their own tax and succession planning to ensure that their own Wills are in place and tailored to suit their own particular family and financial circumstances.

David also has experience in dealing with adults with incapacity matters. This may be where an individual is either taking steps to ensure that someone can deal with their lifetime affairs on their behalf, or where someone has already lost capacity and requires a Guardian to act for them. David can advise on the options, rights and responsibilities of each person involved in such circumstances and can assist in the day to day administration of such.

David is warm, friendly and approachable and ensures that the law is easy to understand. His youthfulness allows him to tackle issues with enthusiasm and positivity, whilst acting with diligence, precision and professionalism. David’s key objective in the work that he performs is to offload any pressure or stress his client may feel in what is often an emotive and sensitive matter.

He has also been awarded STEP Certificates at distinction level in Wills and Executries, and Trusts. STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners) is the worldwide professional association for practitioners dealing with family inheritance and succession planning.

Solicitor

Charlotte Fleming

Charlotte is a Solicitor within our Wills, Estates and Succession Planning Team in Glasgow.

She graduated from the University of Glasgow with a First Class Honours Degree in Law in 2017 and achieved the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice with Distinction in 2018.

Charlotte completed her traineeship with a highly respected commercial law firm. In addition to private client work, she gained experience in diverse areas of law such as litigation, commercial contracts and commercial property.

Having joined BTO in February 2021, Charlotte assists with the drafting of Wills and Powers of Attorney, and the administration of Estates. Clients commend Charlotte for her attention to detail and her ability to explain complex matters of law to clients in an understandable manner.

Legal Executive

Elaine Clark

Elaine is a paralegal within BTO’s Wills, Estates and Succession Planning department. She joined BTO in 2006 and specialises in the administration of Trusts, Estates, Powers of Attorney and Guardianships.

Elaine has many years of experience having worked in the private client field since 1990. She qualified as a SOLAS (The Society of Law Accountants in Scotland) Trust Accountant in 1992, moving on to qualify as a paralegal in 1998.

Elaine deals with all aspects in the day to day administration of Trusts including the production of the Annual Trust Accounts.

Elaine also deals with all aspects of the administration of both testate and intestate estates including meeting clients, investigating and obtaining full details of a person’s estate, submitting the necessary HMRC forms and calculating and settling IHT, when necessary, submitting the application for Confirmation to the court and the ingathering and distribution of assets to the beneficiaries and the production of the Executry Accounts. Elaine has dealt with some very large and complex estates, involving negotiations with HMRC and foreign estate assets. She also has experience in dealing with estates which have been problematic due to family conflicts.

Elaine also deals with the day to day administration of Power of Attorney clients and Guardianships including the production of the annual accounts and submitting these to the Office of the Public Guardian.

Elaine is very approachable and her main goal is to take the burden in dealing with such matters from her clients and provide them with a friendly, effective and efficient service. Elaine is also conscientious and very organised and which makes her extremely efficient in her job.

Prior to joining BTO Elaine spent 10 years working for Mitchells Robertson, firstly dealing with clients share portfolios and insurance then as a Trust Accountant and finally moving on to become a Trust and Executry Paralegal there. Elaine also worked as a Trust and Executry Paralegal at McClure Naismith for 2 years and Bishops for 4 years.

Legal Executive

Karen Deans

Karen has been with BTO since 2003 and specialises in all aspects of executry work within the Private Client team. She is a qualified Paralegal and is SOLAS (Society of Law Accountants in Scotland) qualified.

Karen deals with all aspects of the administration of estates including meeting clients, investigating and obtaining full details of a person’s estate, submitting the necessary application for Confirmation to the court and the ingathering and distribution of assets to the beneficiaries. Karen also is experienced in dealing with intestate estates and advising clients on the most tax efficient way to wind up an estate. Karen has also dealt with some very large and complex estates, involving negotiations with HMRC and foreign estate assets.

Prior to joining BTO, Karen spent 10 years working for the Clydesdale Bank in their Trust and Executry Department dealing with both Trust and Estate administration and 5 years working for Anderson Fyfe dealing with Estate administration.

Karen is very approachable and clients feel at ease speaking to her. She is also exceptionally organised and efficient so clients can rest assured that their file is being progressed as efficiently and diligently as possible.

Legal Executive

Shona Currie

Shona started her career training in the Personal Tax Department of Thomson McLintock CA (now known as KPMG CA). Having worked within the accountancy profession, which involved dealing with the Personal Tax matters of Clients and Payroll matters Shona decided to move into the Private Client section of the legal profession in 1995 and qualified as a Private Client Paralegal in 1997.

Shona joined the Private Client Department of BTO in March 2000 and has since dealt with tax matters relating to Personal Tax Clients, Capital Gains, Trusts and Estates and Charity Tax matters. As Shona has had experience within both the legal and accountancy professions she is able to help clients on a wide spectrum of tax issues.

Shona enjoys dealing with clients, of all ages, and provides a friendly and efficient service. She is very approachable and will seek to assist with any query that arises with a client.

Paralegal

Debbie McBride

Debbie is a paralegal qualified in Family Law, Residential Conveyancing and Wills, Trusts & Executries. Debbie initially worked in the public sector with HMRC before moving into the legal sector where she worked for ten years with another firm in Glasgow in Residential Conveyancing. She then qualified as a Paralegal in Wills, Trusts and Executries in 2015 and joined BTO Raeburn Hope in Helensburgh in December of that year. She now deals predominantly with the administration of both testate and intestate Estates, from the initial enquiries through to applying for Confirmation and dealing with any IHT aspects as they arise.

The skills and experience that Debbie has gained during her career in these customer-orientated and client-facing positions mean she is exceptionally well-placed to assist families at what is often a difficult and upsetting time, in a friendly, understanding and compassionate manner.

Outside of work, Debbie enjoys Pilates and walking, having completed several “Kiltwalks” to raise money for children’s charities.

Paralegal

Stephen Gray

Stephen has specialised in the administration of Executries and Trusts since 2006. He graduated from University of Paisley in 2006 with a BA and has a post graduate qualification in Wills, Trusts & Executries from Strathclyde University, qualifying in 2008.

He is also a Law Society of Scotland Accredited Paralegal and a member of The Scottish Paralegal Association.

Paralegal

Marysia Summers

Marysia joined the Edinburgh Private Client Team in 2017 and qualified as a Paralegal in Wills, Trusts & Executries in 2019.

Marysia has worked in the legal industry for over 10 years in Employment law, Asset Management and Private Client. She is highly organised and dedicated to providing the best possible service to her clients.

She has experience in drafting Wills and Powers of Attorney as well as dealing with the administration of estates, Trusts and ongoing Power of Attorney matters.

In her spare time, Marysia enjoys baking, walking and spending time with her family.

Paralegal

Sian Keddie

Sian works as a Paralegal in the Wills, Estates and Succession Planning team, based in the Edinburgh office. She has been working in Private Client since 2018 and joined BTO in 2021.

Sian assists with the drafting of Wills, Powers of Attorney and Living Wills, and with the administration of Trusts and Estates. Understanding what is important to each individual client and helping them to protect this through their succession planning is what she enjoys most about her role. Clients describe her as friendly and approachable, with the ability to explain processes clearly and in an accessible manner.

Sian graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 2014 with an MA and from Robert Gordon University with an LLB in 2021. She is currently undertaking the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice and will become a trainee solicitor with BTO in September 2022.