A deeply personal tragedy is the inspiration behind a new book launched by will writer Steve Bish, and the topic of discussion on the latest Today’s Wills and Probate podcast.

Bish is somewhat typical of many will writers who have unconventional routes in to the legal profession. His own career began in sales, marketing, training and recruitment, before running a traditional wooden window manufacturing business.

But the untimely and tragic death of a friend led Bish to retrain and become a will writer after supporting the family of his friend, and helping deal with the legal aftermath.

Close friend Carl was killed in a traffic collision during a scooter ride the pair were taking one evening. Carl died without a will, leaving his wife Anne and young daughter to navigate the rules of intestacy at the worst possible time. Witnessing their struggle left an imprint on Steve that inspired him to retrain.

He now spends a huge amount of time and energy advising clients on the importance of estate planning; a motivation that ultimately fuelled the creation of his book. He didn’t want a dry technical manual or a textbook that gathers dust. Instead, he aimed for a plain‑English, conversational guide, the kind of resource people could pick up, dip in and out of, and actually understand. The tone echoes how he speaks at WI and Rotary talks: relatable, humorous, accessible and packed with real‑world examples.

Where There’s a Will, There’s a Way is now available to purchase, with a proportion of each sale being donated to the Kaotic Angel Foundation.

The Today's Wills and Probate podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider, and at www.todayswillsandprobate.co.uk. Subscribe today to hear all the latest news and views across the wills and probate sector.

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Estates, and Property Ladder Group

Estate planning is changing; demand is rising, lifestyles are changing, family structures are becoming more complex, and taxation is crippling. Clients no longer want, or indeed need, a simple will. They want a plan. Something reviewed regularly. Something that adapts as life changes.

It's the topic of the latest Today's Wills and Probate Podcast as host David Opie welcome Andrew Houston, Managing Director of CTT Group on to discuss his views on moving away from traditional transactional work toward a model where ongoing service will become the norm.

With a nod to CTT's founder and industry innovator Clive Ponder, whose death just over 12 months ago came as a great shock, innovation and technology will be at the core of how we as an industry deliver the future of estate planning services.

AI is already reshaping training, advice quality, and client engagement; indeed CTT themselves have invested heavily in an in-house AI simulator, which allows advisers to practise conversations with a virtual client. It tests technical knowledge. It tests soft skills. And it provides instant feedback. A far cry from the old model of supervisors shadowing advisers in person.

Clients expect speed. Consistency and transparency in the all important fact find which, with the ever evolving legal landscape and rise in contentious matters, makes the role of technology in capturing information, prompting the right questions, and creating clear audit trails, all the more important.

Technology, says Houston, is the enabler.

There will of course be winners and losers. Firms that fail to evolve will fall behind. The winners will be those who continue to innovate. Those who embrace data. Those who refine the client journey. The next three years, he predicts, will bring rapid acceleration and possibly start to see a hugely fragmented market, consolidate.

The Today's Wills and Probate podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider, and at www.todayswillsandprobate.co.uk. Subscribe today to hear all the latest news and views across the wills and probate sector.

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Estates, and Property Ladder Group

The latest Today’s Wills and Probate Podcast dives into one of the most pressing conversations in private client work: how technology can transform the way people create and register Lasting Powers of Attorney.

Host David Opie welcomes Matt Cresswell, founder of Power of Attorney Online, for a discussion about modernising a process that millions still find confusing, slow and inaccessible.

Like many founder stories, Matt's own route into the sector is far from traditional. After his father’s dementia diagnosis, Matt and his family struggled through an LPA process that was expensive, error‑prone and emotionally draining. His background in advertising, marketing and eight years at Facebook/Meta “planted a seed that maybe there’s a better way”.

The discussion explores why awareness of LPAs remains so low, despite their importance. Digitisation offers a huge opportunity for technology to improve accuracy, speed and user confidence suggests Matt, which would go some way to tackling the 50,000 applications rejected each year due to basic mistakes.

Digital tools aren’t designed to replace solicitors says Matt. Power of Attorney Online is a “Goldilocks” solution: guidance‑led, affordable and perfectly suited to straightforward applications, while more complex or sensitive cases remain firmly in the hands of legal professionals.

There is an opportunity for everyone concludes Matt. The sector can grow the market together, raise public understanding, and make LPAs easier for the millions who still don’t have one.

The Today's Wills and Probate podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider, and at www.todayswillsandprobate.co.uk. Subscribe today to hear all the latest news and views across the wills and probate sector.

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Estates, and Property Ladder Group