Sarah McKinlay

Sarah is a Consultant in our Private Client department and has more than 25 years of expertise in the sector.  She specialises in succession and wealth planning, asset protection and capital tax mitigation (inheritance tax and capital gains tax) for individuals and their families.

Sarah advises clients on the use of tax efficient wills and the creation and management of trusts. She takes a proactive approach to the review of personal planning across wills and trusts, inheritance tax strategies (including maximising tax relief through Business Property Relief), pension benefits and planning, life policies and the making of lifetime gifts as well as having considerable experience in the administration of executries (including those with complex tax or foreign issues), incapacity issues, guardianship orders, powers of attorney, charities and partnerships.

Sarah has provided advice to financial advisers, business owners and family lawyers and works closely with family and corporate lawyers and financial planners in particular. She holds the Diploma in Financial Planning. Sarah has a particular interest in advising on the legal, business and tax issues involved in planning business succession including the establishment and management of Family Investment Companies.

Sarah has tutored at the University of Edinburgh, spoken regularly at and chaired external conferences and is a Notary Public.

Sarah has previously been identified by the Chambers and Partners Guide to the Legal Profession as a leader in her field, being ranked as a Band 2 practitioner for a number of years and described as “very conscientious and very pleasant”. Chambers also noted that she “has outstanding technical knowledge, comes across very well with clients and is efficient”. She has been described in the Legal 500 as being ‘highly professional’ with an ‘impeccable client manner and progressive approach’.