Class of 2013: Start a Blog

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As everyone is seemingly giving away free advice to those graduating in 2013, I thought I’d do the same for my last ever article for this blog.

For those of you who feel like crying over what I have just said, worry not; I shall soon be undertaking two new projects- a professional legal blog and a not- so- professional personal blog.

Both of those will (hopefully) launch by September 2013.

Back to my original point, then.

I could’ve have easily done an article on how to most efficiently look for a job or various ways of improving your CV; I am quite certain, though, that you have heard all of that before and are, quite frankly, sick and tired of such remarks and pieces of...advice.

That’s exactly why I decided to prove to you that starting a blog might actually be quite a good idea in the end.

I shall, naturally, be as short and sweet as I can; here goes:

It improves your writing skills

Quite self- explanatory, I would’ve have thought...For those in doubt, however, I’d like to point out that writing articles (whatever the topic) greatly improves your writing skills.

Why?

Well, probably and mainly because of the fact that you are aware that other people will read them and,  as a result, do your best to make a good and lasting impression.

It helps you think BIG

Let’s face it; thinking small’s not going to get you anywhere these days. You have to believe that you can make a change in your chosen field.

Also, do remember that most, if not all, employers look for people who are not afraid to realise their full potential and, to quote Superman, ‘show the world what they’re made of’.

It improves your research skills

I can assure you that, regardless of the topic that you have chosen, you WILL do some research before your start writing up an article.

As noted above, as you know that your blog is in the public domain, you’ll think twice before publishing anything that you hadn’t looked into in advance.

It shows you’ve got an opinion

The last employer who was looking for his droids was Luke Skywalker (pretty lame joke but you got my point).

Employers want people who have an informed opinion and, thus, know where they stand.

It improves your commercial awareness

‘We are not only looking for people with an outstanding academic record but also for ones whose commercial awareness will be able to contribute to the business as a whole’

Yeap, we’ve all been there...

Also, if you want people to read your blog (which you will, trust me) you are going to have to come up with interesting and trending topics.

How do you do that?

By reading the news and listening to podcasts, of course.

Before you know it, you’ll be jumping in people’s conversations, annoying the Hell out of them!

It helps you stay focused and teaches you discipline

When I first started this blog, I was almost certain that I’d not be able to maintain it for more than a month, let alone seven months as I’d planned originally.

In time, however, as people started to read my articles, I started feeling really bad when I even dared think about not submitting my daily entry.

It gets you into a frame of mind whereas because you know that you have to do something you just put all of your energy, attention and effort into in and do it.

It helps you get noticed

A friend of mine used to say ‘it’s not what you know these, it’s whom you know’. Although I disagree in that I am of the belief that a fine blend of those is essential, I trust that knowing the right person does help under certain circumstances.

Believe it or not, a specialised blog is a pretty good platform for taking the initial steps to your career.

Well, class of 2013, I trust that the above should be sufficient to convince you that starting a blog can be immensely beneficial to your professional development, whatever the sphere you’ve chosen.

For now, I bid you adieu.

...for now.

‘Academic’ Intelligence: A (Very) Brief Overview of Tax, Part Three

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Today’s article is the final one on taxation and will endeavour to look into some basic issues surrounding Inheritance Tax (‘IHT’).

The basic rule is that, when a person passes away his estate is taxed at 40% so long as it amounts to more than £ 325, 000. If the value of the estate is below £ 325, 000, or within what is known as the Nil Rate Band (‘NRB’), it is taxed at 0%.

‘Estate’ means (in general terms) everything that the deceased owed at the time of his death.

Let us an example:

John passed away in January 2012. He left a will saying that his Rolex watch and his doughnut business were to go to his son, Dan whilst everything else was to go to his wife, Gemma. At the time of his death, his estate consisted of:

• His VW Passat- £ 2500
• His Don King Doughnuts LTD business valued at £ 300, 000, which he had owned since 2000
• 12 Donald Road, a property he owned with his wife, Gemma, as joint tenants- £ 200, 000
• HSBS Bank account in his sole name- £ 1000
• His Rolex Watch- £ 1000

In February 2003 John made a gift of £ 1000 to his, Dan.

In March 2010, John made a gift of £ 3000 to his daughter, Jodie.

In December 2011, John paid £ 3000 into the Dog Trust.

John’s death estate is made up of his VW, his doughnut business, ½ of the jointly owned property, his HSBC account and his Rolex watch and is, therefore, calculated as follows:

£ 2500 + £ 200, 000 + £ 80, 000 (1/2 of the price of the property – 10% its value for IHT purposes) + £ 1000 + £ 1000= £ 384, 000.

The taxable estate, however, is another matter.

Under the will, Gemma, John’s wife, is to inherit everything but the Rolex and the Doughnut business, id est £ 183, 000. This sum is fully  IHT exempt as the ‘spouse exemption’ applies (s. 18 Inheritance Tax Act 1984 ‘IHTA’).

The doughnut business is covered by the business property relief (‘BPR’), ss. 103- 114 IHTA, as John had owned it for more than two years and was a limited company (unquoted shares).

The Rolex is not covered by any exemptions.

The two transfers that John made to his daughter and his son are called Potentially Exempt Transfers (individual to individual, ‘PET’) and are only taxed at 40% if the donor, i.e. John, does not survive within seven years of the gift.

The gift of £ 1000 to Dan, then, will not be taxed as John has survived the seven years.

The gift of £ 3000 to Jodie will, however, will attract IHT. Taper relief does not apply here because the donor has failed to survive at least free years (for more on taper relief and its application, please see << http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/inheritancetax/how-to-value-estate/gifts.htm#4 >>).

The final transfer of £ 3000 that John did into the dog trust is called a Life- Time Gift (individual into a trust, ‘LCT’).

IHT at 20% is payable at the onset; i.e. John should have paid £ 600 when he initially made the gift. If the donor survives for seven years, no further charge will be applied. Otherwise, IHT will need to be recalculated at 40% and the balance paid to HMRC.

In our case, however, an Annual Exemption of £ 3000 can be applied to the LCT; thus, it will not be included in the taxable estate.

 In the light of the above, then, the John’s taxable estate is made up of the HSBC account and the gift to Jodie, id est £ 4000.

As, however, this falls in the NRB, the IHT is paid at 0% and, thus, no IHT is due.

IHT calculations (much like CGT, CT, etc. ones) are, of course, much more complicated than the above examples and, should you need advice on your tax planning, I suggest you go to a specialist solicitor rather than referring to my articles as they are but a mere overview of various taxes in the UK.

Poet's Corner: Gluttony

Look: a fiery pit-

The words which carry

Our own glutinous mind.

‘Social’ Intelligence: #stop hash- tagging #take a walk

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I’m all about social media; I really do think it’s great in that it opens up a whole new world of possibilities .

As an example, I have used it to actively (and rather annoyingly) promote myself and my views through my blog articles.

A lot of firms these days have entire departments that specifically deal with social media marketing and generate vast revenues through those.

Several of my colleagues have even recently tried to promote the importance of a lawyer’s online presence and image through various online seminars and presentations.

Many of my friends have met their other half through online dating websites and have never been happier.

All of the above is truly amazing and admirable; but why, oh why, must people tag everything that they do all the time wherever they are?

I shan’t turn the above into a rant (although I really want to). Rather, I shall examine a couple of examples which will, hopefully, convince you to keep your hash- tagging at bay...

#why #hast- tag #anything #on #facebook  #or  #instagram

See how annoying that was!? Why would you want to do it to your ‘friends’? I, mean, there are a good may easier ways to get people to hate and block you. Like sending them game requests, for instance. Or wishing them a ‘Happy Easter!’ on Good Friday.

#amazingdinner #verytasty #readyfordesert

My, my; you are ready for desert, are you now? Outstanding. People can finally go to bed happy and the world can start turning once more.

#feelingsaid

#watchafunnymovie

Hash- tagging has become a great way of sharing information; it’s quick, easy and quite user- friendly.

It must, however, as everything else, be used in moderation. After all, just because  chocolate- mint fudge’s my most favourite thing in the world doesn’t mean that I must have it three times a day.

I know what you’re thinking: what a cliché thing to say, everyone knows that- having too much of something might kill you in the end!

Well, that’s not what I meant, really; what I meant to say was that the more fudge I have, the less I’ll like it.

Look, it’s already started happening:

<< http://storify.com/stdoyle/tag-etiquette >>

(**NB** The above link has nothing, or very little, to do with choco- mind fudge **NB**)

In the end of the day, it must also be borne in mind that some media platforms, like Twitter and Instagram, are #- friendly whilst others, like Facebook and LinkedIn, are most definitely not.

Keep that in mind whilst I go and get some fudge.

#ilovefudge

'Everyday’ Intelligence: Pro- Bono/ Volunteering- Why I Do What I Do

 

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‘’Jus Est Ars Boni Et Aequi ‘’

Law is the science of the good and the just.

Regardless of the fact that lawyers are nowadays often seen by many (including some Western governments, it would seem…) as ‘fat cats’, I firmly believe that the above is as true today as it was two thousand years ago.

People have often asked me why I’d chosen to do law; in fact, only recently, a colleague said I’d be better suited for a banker because I looked like someone who’d be highly successful in a cutthroat corporate environment.

Well, I chose law for several reasons:

• I enjoy it and that makes me good at it
• I am incredibly competitive and argumentative
• I like helping others; it makes feel useful and alive

 

I’m telling you all of that for a reason; bear with me.

The other day, I was talking to my brother who, unlike me, had never been a big fan of helping others than his good self.

I told him about this new pilot pro- bono initiative at the CAB which I was going to be involved in throughout the summer.

He then waited for my enthusiasm to subside and asked me, in the calmest and coolest manner possible:

‘So how much are they paying you for that then?’

‘Nothing’, I said. ‘That’s why it’s called pro- bono.’

‘But I thought you said that they chose you over the other applicants; I mean, surely’, my brother went on ‘if you are good at something (and, presumably, better than others), they should be paying you money to do it, right?’

To an extent, the (twenty-year-old) kid was right; after all, as he had once noted, it was sometimes very difficult to survive on nothing but others’ gratitude.

It’s not, he pointed out (in an unnecessarily sarcastic manner, I thought), as nutritious as, say, a rib- eye steak with roast potatoes.

Having said that thought, it must be borne in mind that the above applies only if you haven’t got your own means to buy the said steak; if you do, will it not make sense to help out those who can’t afford a steak on their own?

Leaving steaks alone for a moment and going back to law, with the coming of LASPO, more and more people are in need of free legal advice.

Why?

Quite simple, really; because they simply cannot afford it.

What I told my brother was, too, quite simple.

In reality, doing pro- bono work pays off because value is not always measured in money.

Put yourself in their shoes; you’d want to be helped out in your time of need, right?

Law is the science of the good and the just.

Do write that down, Mr Grayling; if you haven’t done so during your many years at law school, that is.

See what I did there?

Food For Thought: What We Can Learn from…a Psychopath

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Before any of you reports me to the police, let me just say that the above is not, surprisingly enough, a reference to me; after all, as I keep being reminded on a daily basis, the world does not revolve around of me.

Prior to reading on today’s entry, I should like to implore you to (skim) read the following excerpt from Kevin Dutton’s recent book, ‘The Wisdom of Psychopaths’.

<< http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=wisdom-from-psychopaths >>

Before we go on any further, I’d like us to briefly look into the definition of ‘psychopath’.

‘’psy·cho·path

A person with an antisocial personality disorder, manifested in aggressive, perverted, criminal, or amoral behaviour without empathy or remorse.’’

Right then; looking at the above, your…average…psychopath is definitely not what you might call a ‘role model’.

Nevertheless, what Mr Dutton aims to achieve in his book is to, once again, remind us that everything is rather subjective and, thus, subject to interpretation and distortion.

Looking at the above definition through his prism, one might be quite taken aback and startled (as was I) by the end product.

Firstly, it must be borne in mind that anyone who finds it difficult or tedious to converse with others might be said to have some, albeit miniscule, degree of ‘antisocial personality disorder’.

Having said that, then, when we refer to a psychopath, we must not automatically imagine a serial killer but, rather, someone who is pedantic about and obsessed with what he does.

Further to the above, Dutton notes, is it not a positive trait to be (moderately) aggressive? Aggressive people tend to be more decisive, know what they want and, most importantly, know how to get it.

In relation to the amoral behaviour, it is quite debatable as to what exactly that constitutes – whether it is one dictated by law or one imposed by society.

Should we adopt the latter, will it not be beneficial to be amoral when certain morals impede our personal and/ or professional development?

Finally, is it not true that most successful magnates and entrepreneurs these days brag about their ruthlessness and the fact that their complete lack or remorse and empathy has been instrumental to their success?

In his book, Mr Dutton goes on to argue that psychopaths are often very decisive, practical, pragmatic and, over and above all, incredibly resourceful.

Such characteristics do not, of course, translate into wisdom; nevertheless, I guess that the book, unlike the excerpt, will endeavour to demonstrate what the author meant by those strong words.

In the end of the day, it might well turn out that, although lethal in large quantities (as is, ironically, everything else), psychopathy might well, when in moderation, prove to be beneficial to our development as individuals and as species.

One problem, however, remains; human beings have always seen ‘in moderation’ as too difficult a concept to grasp.

A Runt’s Rant: When Do YOU Do Your Weekly Shopping?

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Well, I do mine in my lunch break and I’m not ashamed to say it.

Although, judging by the recent comments of pretty much everyone, I might well have a very good reason to be.

And here’s why:

The Guy Who Does His Shopping in a Suit

As I was walking around the supermarket today, picking up my groceries, a young couple walked past me and, after giggling for about five seconds, said:

‘ROFL’, the girl said. ‘Imagine if we went out to do our shopping in our graduation clothes! I mean, the guy’s practically doing his shopping in suit!’

The fact that I was wearing a suit, of course, was incredibly entertaining in itself. Its hilarity was, it would seem, significantly enhanced by the fact that I was also carrying a shopping basket full of fruit.

Point taken, though; next time I go out shopping in my lunch break, I’ll change into a track suit. Or a pair of overalls; weather permitting, of course.

You Should Get Your Kids to Do it

When I went to the counter, the shop assistant asked me whether I was normally doing my weekly shopping in my lunch break. When I said I was, she replied:

‘Oh, you poor thing! You should get your kids to do it for you; that’s what I do anyway!’

What a brilliant idea, I thought…All I needed to do was to get me some kids…

You’re the One; the ONLY One

When I finally reached work with my bags of shopping, a colleague of mine looked at me, smiled and said nothing. In my defence (to his not saying anything, naturally), I said that I could not possibly be the only one around who did his shopping in his lunch break.

‘You are, Mr Anderson; you ARE the One; the ONLY One.’

I had no idea who that Mr Anderson was and, to be honest, felt a bit offended by the fact that my colleague didn’t know my surname, having worked with me for more than a year now.

He then handed me a spoon and, looking rather amused, asked me to bend it by using my mind.

I was, however, too tired from my shopping trip and bent it using sheer physical force instead.

That, for some reason, didn’t make him as happy as I thought it would.

Although all of the above reasons seem quite logically compelling, I am still of the firm opinion that they’re actually not.

And if the above sounds confusing to you, you should try doing your shopping during your lunch break, in a suit, without using your kids and by being that One Mr Anderson who’s hobby, apparently, is bending spoons by using his mind.

Good Idea, Chap: Living La Vida Loca

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Contrary to what you might have expected, today’s article will have very little to do with Ricky Martin or, indeed, with anything as flamboyant and piquant as his songs or live performances.

Rather, it is but a mere reflection of my thoughts on the hectic lifestyle that some Londoners have adopted.

Prior to going into any further detail, I must say that I did have an amazing day in London  today in that I met up with some incredible people and managed to catch up with some old friends.

What puzzled me (again), however, was the very fact that nothing seemed to stop; everything and everyone was constantly moving.

What’s more, no- one seemed to want to stop.

In fact, people seemed quite happy about the fact that they were constantly moving.

To a bystander, it would initially seem that the said people were under considerable stress as they often acted and moved in a way which suggested that they did so solely because they were compelled by an outside force which was far greater than them.

I was once told by a dear friend of mine that the above force had a name: ‘tube delays, line closures and diversions’ they were called.

I didn’t quite get what he meant at the time. Thankfully, after I had been starting at him rather blankly for a minute or so, he decided to elaborate on the matter and said that everyone was in a constant rush because they wanted to get to the tube on time.

But surely, I thought, that made no sense whatsoever as there was one every three minutes or so. Consequently, even if you missed your ‘own’, you could easily wait for five minutes and get on the next one.

Theoretically, my friend said, I was quite right. In reality, though, he said, most people in London were well aware that time was money and had, thus, calculated how long it would take them to get from home to work, to the second.

To be honest, I quite liked the idea; the very fact that people around me knew that time was money made me feel a bit more secure and, for some reason, at ease.

For one, that meant (at least logically) that, if I was to live and work in London, I would not have to tolerate people’s lateness (simply because they wouldn’t, or shouldn’t, be late in the first place).

In the end of the day, what seemed like a rather hectic and destructive lifestyle at first, turned out to be quite logical and practical.

Under the circumstances, it was a good idea and one that I could get used to.

All in due course, I guess.

‘Academic’ Intelligence: A (Very) Brief Overview of Taxation, Part Two

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Today’s article is a continuation of last week’s entry on the various types of taxes that an individual may be required to pay in the United Kingdom.

Last week, I focused on Value Added Tax, i.e. VAT, Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions through looking at some simplified tables and examples.

I shall now, in turn, look at the Capital Gains Tax and Corporation Tax.

Capital Gains Tax (‘CGT’)

CGT is applied on the profit that a person might make from disposing of a capital asset which has increased in value during the period of their ownership.

The above is best illustrated by an example.

Let us say that John, a banker, bought a painting in 1999 for £ 5, 000. Note that buying the painting is in no way connected to the nature of his employment. The painting had since increased in value to £ 12, 000. If he chose to sell the painting, he would be liable to pay CGT on the £ 7, 000 profit that he had made.

Further to the above, the CGT personal allowance for individuals in 2013/ 2014 is £ 10, 900. This means that CGT will only be payable on profits above the £ 10, 900 threshold. It must be noted the personal allowance is halved for trustees.

The rates at which CGT is applied are as follows:

Basic rate individuals- 18% (i.e. individuals earning less than £ 32, 010)

Higher rate individuals- 28% (i.e. individuals earning £ 32, 010 or more)

Where Entrepreneurs’ Relief applies: 10%

( ‘Entrepreneurs' Relief allows individuals and some trustees to claim relief on qualifying gains made on the disposal of any of the following:

• all or part of a business
• the assets of a business after it has stopped trading
• shares in a company
•  

The relief applies for the years 2008-09 onwards. There is a maximum lifetime limit of Entrepreneurs' Relief you can claim.’

See <<  http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/cgt/businesses/reliefs.htm#1 >> )

Corporation Tax (‘CT’)

As you might have probably guessed, corporation tax is paid by private and public companies and not individuals.

Nevertheless, you might have to deal with it if you are a company director or even a shareholder (if, for instance, you want to know a bit more about the tax obligations of the company that you want to invest in).

CT is payable on a company’s profits.

The current rates are:

Rate			2013	2014
Small profits rate*			20%*
Small profits rate can be claimed by qualifying companies with profits at a rate not exceeding			£300,000
Marginal Relief Lower Limit			£300,000
Marginal Relief Upper Limit			£1,500,000
Standard fraction			3/400
Main rate of Corporation Tax*			23%*	21%*
Special rate for unit trusts and open-ended investment companies			20%*

( See << http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/rates/corp.htm >)

For more on how Marginal Relief is applied and calculated, see <<  http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/ct/forms-rates/claims/marginal-rate.htm >>)

As CT is a lot more complex that the other types of taxation, I shall not go into any further detail at this point.

Next week, I will endeavour to provide the reader with a brief overview of how and when Inheritance tax is applied and becomes due.

Poet's Corner: A Riddle

I saw you once

When you were little-

Your face was red

Your bones were brittle

You looked so weak

Much a like a tittle.

But as you grew

You caused a ripple

Outflanked all those

Who’ve seen you

Crippled.

I see you now.

And I’m still riddled

With seas of doubt

Which can’t be diddled.

Unless she's blind

Or somehow bridled.

‘Social’ Intelligence: He Said She Said You Said I Said; Is It True!?

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Today was a very special day for me in that I found out that I had recently been involved in activities that I had never even thought of before.

In fact, I was so pleasantly surprised my new- found self that I bought it a drink before I sent it home.

It would seem, for instance, that I had, at some point last week, applied to study a Master’s degree in Law in Melbourne, Australia. I was actually quite happy to find that out as I had always wanted to go to Australia but had never had the time and money to do so.

Now, however, it’d seem that I had also won a scholarship in the said university which would also cover my living expenses.

‘How awesome of me!’, I thought. ‘I must’ve worked really hard to do that!’

A friend of mine was, however, quite concerned by my firm decision to go to Australia because if I was to do, he said, I wouldn’t have been to go on a third date with that remarkable girl that he’d heard so much about.

‘So far, so good’, I thought. ‘A fully funded LLM in Australia AND a remarkable potential girlfriend’.

And I didn’t even lift a finger!

As I was thinking about what clothes to pack for Melbourne, another friend of mine asked me whether I’d include my trip to Australia in that book that I was going to publish.

He then went on to give me some advice on what the cover should look like and what the contents of the book should be if I wanted it to really ‘sell, sell, sell!’.

Naturally, I took detailed notes of everything he said and turned to yet another friend who was looking at me in a curiously enquiring manner.

When I asked her whether everything was alright, she looked me in the eye and asked me whether I thought that it was a good idea to go to Australia with this arachnophobia that I had developed when I was little.

She also wanted to know what my grandparents thought about my going away as, apparently, they didn’t let me go to Hong Kong when I found a job there some two years ago.

As you might probably appreciate, all of the above was news to me. It seemed as thought I had been living another life without even realising it for quite some time.

I couldn’t, naturally, doubt or question any of the things that my friends told me .

After all, they said he said she said I said all of those at one point.

Ah, yes...

You couldn’t argue with that...

‘Everyday’ Intelligence: Knowing How to Ask for Help

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Being an incredibly jovial and approachable person, there are but a few things that can truly infuriate me.

As previously noted, one of those is people being late for no good reason and not letting me know beforehand; something I consider immensely disrespectful.

 (See << http://myveryownhell.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/social-intelligence-why-you-shouldnt-be.html  >> )

Another thing that can easily turn my smile upside down is someone asking me for help/ advice/ a favour and then saying something along the lines of:

‘But can we please do that on a Tuesday at 8pm in, say, two weeks’ time at the ‘Marine Pub’? That’d suit me best as I’d be quite busy during the next couple of weeks; plus, the pub’s, like, right next door to where I live. I think you can take a bus there as there’s a bus stop nearby. Thaaanks.’

Asking for help is fine; in fact, it’s more than fine- it’s as essential for your general well- being as it is for your professional development.

Having said that, it is imperative to ask for help in a correct and proper manner and to keep several things in mind.

Let us take the above example, for instance. Let us say that person A has asked person B for some free legal advice (you know, as a friend). Upon person B agreeing to provide the said advice, person A turns around and says the above.

Now then, what’s wrong with that?

Everything.

To begin with, when you ask someone for help, regardless of how close you two are, you must ALWAYS keep in mind that you are asking him to spend some of HIS time on YOUR problem.

Taking that into consideration, it’d make no sense for you to ask him to help you out at a time and place which are convenient for you but inconvenient for him; right?

Now, let us take another example:

Let us (theoretically, of course) imagine that my eighteen year-old cousin had asked me to help her choose the right universities to apply to. Let us assume that I had agreed and we had, consequently, agreed on a time (8pm on Thursday) and place (Skype) to have a chat about it.

Would I, do you think, appreciate it if I called her on Skype at that time and on that day only to be told by my aunt that my cousin had went off to a seaside resort earlier on during the day without letting me know that she would be unavailable to Skype me later on?

How would I feel if I, say, had had to cancel a couple of appointments and eat my otherwise delicious dinner in less than ten minutes so that I wasn’t late for the said Skype call...?

I wouldn’t have a been a happy bunny, I can tell you that. Thank God the above is only a hypothetical situation, eh...?

To conclude, when asking someone for help/ advice/ a favour, remember that YOU need HIM and NOT the other way around.

In the end of the day, if you do any of the above, chances are that the same person shan’t help you ever again.

Unless he’s your cousin...