Ian Brown
Experience
Ian graduated from Northumbria University with a Bachelor of Sciences degree in Geography. He then several years in the public sector, starting at HMRC Stamp Taxes, before moving into self-employment as a Stamp Duty Land Tax Consultant, then joining a local authority’s Council Tax team. In October 2013, Ian moved to the local authority’s Court of Protection team where he assisted in the local authority acting for over 300 clients as deputy or appointee, as well as dealing with community funerals for those who passed away in the community and had no next of kin. This involved liaising with the Coroner’s Office, visiting the property to search for a Will, funeral plan or bank statement, registering the death, dealing with the funeral director, and liaising with any family members who were subsequently found.
Ian also dealt with a variety of straightforward and complex applications to the Court of Protection including the appointment or discharge of a deputy, seeking permission to purchase or sell a property, and make a gift on a client’s behalf. Ian also expanded his knowledge of state benefits, assisted the Adult Social Care teams in any safeguarding proceedings, completed the annual returns to the Office of the Public Guardian, and assisted with lay deputyship applications. Ian was instrumental in putting in place extensive Court of Protection procedures to ensure the team dealt with their substantial workload in an efficient manner, especially as the team was expanding.
In September 2019, Ian moved to EMG Solicitors Ltd as a Client Executive in the Court of Protection team. In April 2023, he reduced the number of Court of Protection clients he has and moved into a dual role with the Expert Witness team. He hopes to undertake the SQE and become a qualified solicitor in the near future.
Current Workload
Ian uses his Court of Protection knowledge and assist with the drafting of the expert witness statements for property and finance deputyship costs, for both claimant and defendant personal injury claims. He retains a small number of Court of Protection and Trust clients and assists the deputies with the management of their monies and the day-to-day running of the files.
Ian is a Director and Treasurer for Headway Wearside and has been involved with the charity since 2019 through EMG Solicitors Ltd.
