Cerith is a Partner in the Private Client Team.
He is a fluent Welsh speaker having grown up in Llandovery, Carmarthenshire. Before qualifying as a Solicitor, Cerith spent a decade in professional rugby playing for teams in Wales, France and England. He also represented the Welsh national team and the Barbarians.
Cerith specialises in estate planning for high-net-worth individuals, including agricultural asset holders and business owners, as well as the administration of estates.
Cerith has expertise in the preparation of Wills, Lasting Powers of Attorney, Deeds of Variation and trust documents with an emphasis on family succession and tax planning. He regularly advises on Capital Gains Tax, Inheritance Tax and Income Tax, addressing both lifetime planning and post-death considerations.
Recent examples of Cerith’s work include:-
- Assisting family farming clients on inheritance tax mitigation following the 2024 Autumn Budget. This involved the equalisation of assets between spouses to maximise the respective spouses’ inheritance tax threshold for agricultural and business relief, whilst liaising with the property team to resolve complex property title issues.
- Supporting the administrator and surviving spouse of a high-net worth individual with substantial business assets. The administration of the estate involved the threat of litigation from the children of a previous marriage; the instruction of genealogists to trace an unknown family tree; and the appropriation of the matrimonial home to the surviving spouse according to the rules of intestacy and the redistribution of the balance of the spouse’s net sum to the remaining beneficiaries.
- Guiding the owners of a stud farm through succession planning issues, comparing the benefits of transferring the business assets to a discretionary trust versus making outright gifts. This advice balanced tax efficiency with the needs of the children involved in the business against those who were not.
- Advising executors in administering the estates of spouses who passed away in close succession, both holding shares in a property investment business with uncooperative directors. This involved dealing with the dispute and corporate teams to ascertain the extent of the assets owned and advising on the devolution of the business interests.
Cerith is a full member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).