FREE SRA SQE Property Practice and Criminal Law Questions and Answers

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A man died intestate a month ago. He had never been married or in a civil partnership. At the time of his death, the man was living with his partner, with whom he had been cohabiting for 20 years, and her daughter (aged 23 years). The partner’s daughter lived with the man and his partner throughout their relationship.

The man had a son (aged 25 years) from a previous relationship and a daughter (aged 19 years) whom he and his partner adopted ten years ago.

Who is entitled to share in the distribution of the man’s estate?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
In the absence of a will, the estate of the deceased will be distributed according to the rules of intestacy. Since the man was not married or in a civil partnership, his estate will be inherited by his children. Therefore, both the son from a previous relationship and the daughter he adopted with his partner are entitled to share in the distribution of the estate.

A solicitor acts for a client who is found guilty of theft. The client asks the solicitor to present a plea in mitigation on her behalf. At the hearing, the client gives the court a false address and date of birth in order to conceal the fact that she has previous convictions.

Which of the following statements best describes what the solicitor should do?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
Option E is the correct choice because the solicitor should first ask the client to correct the false information provided to the court. If the client refuses to do so, the solicitor should then cease to act to avoid participating in or facilitating dishonest conduct.

A man died on 4 May 2025. He left his entire estate to his nephew. He was a bachelor and did not make any lifetime gifts. His estate comprised a house free of mortgage worth £175,000 which he had lived in for over 20 years and bank and building society accounts with balances totalling £550,000. He also owned a house worth £170,000 free of mortgage which he inherited from his aunt and which has been rented out to tenants for the last 30 years. The man’s debts and funeral expenses totalled £9,000.

In the 2025/24 tax year the nil rate band is £325,000 and the main residence nil rate band is £175,000.

How much Inheritance Tax will be payable on the man’s estate?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
After deducting debts and funeral expenses from the total estate value, the remaining estate is subject to Inheritance Tax. The main residence nil rate band is applied to reduce the tax. After accounting for this band and subtracting the value of the main residence and the debt, the total Inheritance Tax payable is £224,400.

A man died one month ago leaving a will by which he appointed his friend as his sole executor.

The executor has not yet applied for a grant of probate. He wishes to protect himself against claims of unknown creditors and has decided to place advertisements in the London Gazette, a newspaper circulating in the district in which any land forming part of the estate is situated and any other newspaper or publication he considers might be appropriate.

Which of the following best describes how the executor can protect himself against claims from unknown creditors through advertising as above?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
By placing the advertisements and waiting for two months from the date of the advertisements, the executor allows sufficient time for any potential creditors to come forward with their claims before distributing the estate.

A leasehold flat was owned by a brother and sister as tenants in common in equal shares. The sister died last month and under the terms of her will, the whole of her estate is given to her adult daughter absolutely. It is estimated that the flat is worth £200,000 as a very similar flat in the same block sold for that figure last month. The sister’s estate will be subject to Inheritance Tax (IHT).

If the estimated worth of the flat is correct what will be the value of the sister’s half share for IHT purposes?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
When a property is owned by tenants in common and one of the co-owners dies, their share is subject to Inheritance Tax (IHT). However, a percentage discount is usually applied to reflect the fact that the property was not wholly owned by the deceased. Therefore, the value of the sister's half share for IHT purposes would be £100,000, adjusted with a percentage discount.

A will trust contains the following provisions:

“My Trustees shall hold my property on trust to permit my mother to live in the property for the remainder of her life and after her death to hold the property upon trust for such of my nephew and niece as survive my mother and attain the age of 21 years in equal shares.”

The nephew is now aged 20 years and the niece is aged 22 years.

Which of the following statements best describes the beneficial interests in the trust fund?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
The mother has a vested interest because she has an immediate right to occupy the property for the remainder of her life. However, the nephew and niece only acquire their interests upon certain conditions being met, namely surviving the mother and attaining the age of 21 years. Therefore, their interests are contingent.

A man died leaving a will by which he left all his estate to three trustees to hold on trust for the four children of his best friend. The children are to inherit at the age of 18. Two of the children have reached the age of 18 and have received their share of the trust fund. The other two children are still under the age of 18. The trust fund comprises a portfolio of shares. One of the trustees has just died.

Which of the following best describes whether it is necessary for a replacement trustee to be appointed?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
In a trust, there's typically a requirement for a minimum number of trustees to manage the trust assets. In this case, when the trust was established, three trustees were appointed. However, one trustee has died, leaving two surviving trustees. As long as the minimum number of trustees required by the terms of the trust is still met, there's no immediate need to appoint a replacement trustee.

By his will, a testator appointed his spouse, his friend and his adult son to be his executors. The testator and his wife divorced after the will was executed. The testator has now died. The son predeceased the testator and a grant of probate to the son’s estate was obtained by his nephew.

The testator left all of his estate to his niece who is 20 years of age.

Who has the best right to apply for a grant of representation to the testator’s estate?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
In this scenario, the testator appointed three individuals as his executors: his spouse, his friend, and his adult son. However, since the testator and his spouse divorced after the will was executed, the spouse no longer retains the right to act as an executor. Additionally, the adult son predeceased the testator, and a grant of probate to the son's estate was obtained by his nephew. Given these circumstances, the only remaining executor from the original list is the testator's friend.

A client goes to see his solicitor because his neighbour’s roof has recently fallen into disrepair and he wants to see if he can do anything about it.

He shows his solicitor a deed in which the neighbour gave a covenant for the benefit of the client’s house: “not to let the roof fall into disrepair.”

Which of the following best describes why the client is likely to be able to sue the neighbour under this covenant?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
The client can likely sue the neighbor under the covenant because the neighbor was the original party to the deed containing the covenant. Therefore, the neighbor is bound by the terms of the covenant they agreed to, which prohibits letting the roof fall into disrepair.

A man was convicted in the Magistrates' Court of theft four months ago. He received a suspended sentence order of six months’ custody. The operational period of the suspended sentence is 12 months. A requirement to complete 80 hours of unpaid work was attached to the suspended sentence order and the man has completed the unpaid work.

The man has now been convicted in the Magistrates’ Court for an offence of criminal damage committed one month ago.

Can the Magistrates’ Court now activate the custodial sentence?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
When a person receives a suspended sentence order, they must abide by certain conditions during the operational period. If they commit another offence during this time, the court can activate the suspended sentence and impose the custodial sentence originally suspended.

A client has entered into a contract to sell her house.

After an exchange of contracts, the client seeks advice about whether she may keep the light fitting in the sitting room. This is held to the ceiling by three small screws and was made by the client’s late father.

The light fitting is not mentioned in the contract.

May the client remove the light fitting before completion?

Correct! Wrong!

Explanation:
In this scenario, since the light fitting is only held by three small screws and was made by the client's late father, it is likely to be considered a chattel rather than a fixture. Therefore, the client may remove the light fitting before completion.

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