The Panel Solicitor Instruction Questionnaire - Sale (Sales Questionnaire) forms part of the streamlining process that has been developed to streamline simple sale transactions, such as sales of Manses and many church sales, where one of the firms on Methodist Panel of solicitors firms (Panel Firm) are to be instructed by Managing Trustees (the Streamlining Process).
Please refer to the Summary Flow Chart which provides an at a glance guide showing the six stages of the Streamlining Process, the key steps for Managing Trustees to take and when, along with how TMCP and your professional advisors will assist you. You will use this Sales Questionnaire when you reach Stage 3 of the Streamlining Process – “Offer Accepted”.
| Important to note:
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Stage 3 – Offer Accepted – Collating information to pass to your chosen Panel Firm
Once a buyer has been found for your property and terms agreed to secure best price for the charity, you will be at Stage 3 of the Streamlining Process. To help your chosen Panel Firm to get the time critical conveyancing stage off to a flying start, this Sales Questionnaire has been developed in partnership with the Panel Firms to collate the information they will need to get the sale process moving quickly.
The Sales Questionnaire below sets out the information and documents that your Panel Firm will need when you instruct them to act for you on the sale.
If you have not already completed the corresponding ID Questionnaire, you should now complete and submit the same to deal with the ID requirements pending Check-In Two. Your Panel Firm will need the information and documentation required under the ID Questionnaire to enable them to open a file for you. If the Managing Trustee body is already a client of your chosen Panel Firm and they have already carried out ID checks for you and your fellow trustees on this transaction or a previous legal matter then please double check with them whether they have everything they need or if they would like you to complete and submit the ID Questionnaire to them at this stage.
What does the Sales Questionnaire seek to achieve?
The Panel Firm you have instructed needs to know certain information about the transaction so that they can confirm their quote (the anticipated legal costs of the transaction) and start the conveyancing stage of the Streamlining Process (Stage 4). The Sales Questionnaire should replace some of the initial questions that your solicitors would need to ask you when accepting your instructions and ensure that the Panel Firm has all the information that they need to get your transaction off on the right track. This includes addressing some of the specific Methodist and charity law requirements which can more efficiently be dealt with by you, with TMCP’s help, before the Panel Firm is instructed. All of this should help to streamline the “conveyancing" stage.
=> Action for Managing Trustees to take: Start to complete the Sales Questionnaire and collate the documents required before your Check-In Two appointment with TMCP.
What do Managing Trustees need to provide to TMCP in readiness for Check-In Two?
Please complete questions 1 to 10 inclusive of the Sales Questionnaire and email this to legal@tmcp.org.uk before your Check-In Two appointment. Please send us any documents listed in Part 1 of the Sales Questionnaire (“Documents”) that we do not already have e.g. s.333 Resolution. However, please do not send us any ID Documents.
| Section 333 Resolution
Documents relating to the sale will need to be signed by two Managing Trustees authorised to sign property contracts by the Managing Trustee body under what is known as a “s.333 Resolution”. This is a resolution passed by the Managing Trustee body under s.333 of the Charities Act 2011
A template form of s.333 Resolution and accompanying guidance is available on the TMCP website: It is recommended to authorise more than two potential signatories under your s.333 Resolution to ensure that at least two of those authorised are available when the time comes to sign the documentation.
Please ask the legal officer/case worker dealing with your sale if you have any questions about this at Check-In Two.
Note that if your Managing Trustee body is registered with the Charity Commission, the two authorised Managing Trustees will need to be listed on the Charity Commission website as being charity trustees for the charity |
What do we do if we cannot answer any of the questions in the Sales Questionnaire?
If you have any questions about the Sales Questionnaire generally please contact legal@tmcp.org.uk. If you are unable to provide some of the information (in questions 1 to 10) or require further guidance to help you, please contact the legal officer/case worker handling your sale and/or complete the Sales Questionnaire as much as you can and return it to us indicating any areas you are unsure of in the covering email. We will either help you with this at Check-In Two or arrange an interim “Check-In” where we will go through the questions with you.
PANEL SOLICITOR INSTRUCTION QUESTIONNAIRE - SALE
This Sales Questionnaire is also available in Word format so that you can download the document and complete it.
| Before submitting this Sales Questionnaire to the Panel Firm of your choice, please ensure that you have gone through the Sales Questionnaire with TMCP at your Check-In Two meeting and the Sales Questionnaire is complete. Please also ensure that you include all the documentation referred to in Part 1. If you have any questions about this Sales Questionnaire, please refer them to your contact at TMCP. |
1. Documents to provide to your chosen Panel Firm
Provide:
- Title Register and/or any other title documents that you think are relevant to the sale. (if the property is unregistered any conveyances, indentures and other documents (Provided at Check-In One). Please include all pages and all sides.
- Any plans you have showing the extent of the property you intend to sell (Provided at Check-In One).
- QSR – please ensure this is the version approved by TMCP with any additional information that your surveyor may have needed to provide before approval by TMCP was given.
- Best Price and Adequate Marketing Certificate approved by TMCP.
- Check-In One Checklist.
- If the sale includes a burial ground ONLY – plan of the burial ground and surveyor’s advice on the terms of the burial ground lease (if not included in the QSR).
- S.333 resolution authorising the Managing Trustees named in box 4 of Sales Questionnaire to sign documents on behalf of the Managing Trustee body. 1
2. Questions
| QUESTION | RESPONSE | |
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A. Managing Trustee body | ||
| 1. | NAME OF MANAGING TRUSTEE BODY
Which Managing Trustee body is responsible for the property/transaction in question and is now instructing the Panel Firm to act for them? | [Insert name of the Managing Trustee body responsible for the transaction in question e.g. the Local Church, Circuit Meeting or District Trustees t e.g. High Street Methodist Church Council.]
[ ] This Managing Trustee body is the same as the Managing Trustee body indicated in the ID Questionnaire that has been submitted in relation to this transaction.
OR
[ ] This Managing Trustee body is different to the Managing Trustee body indicated in the ID Questionnaire that has been submitted in relation to this transaction.
Details: N/A OR [details e.g. If Managing Trustee body has changed please indicate why e.g. Managing Trusteeship has been transferred from the Local Church Council as of [DATE]] |
| 2. | REGISTERED CHARITY
Is the Managing Trustee body in box 1 a registered charity? If yes, please include the registered charity name and number | Yes/No
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| 3. | CONTACT ADDRESS
What contact address should be specified in the legal document? | |
| 4. | AUTHORISED MANAGING TRUSTEES | |
| 4.(a) Which two Managing Trustees are authorised to sign on behalf of the Local Church / Circuit/ District? 2 | 1.
2.
| |
| 4.(b) Has the Managing Trustee body authorised any additional Managing Trustees to sign documents should the individuals named in row 4(a) not be available? | Yes/No
If Yes please indicate their names here:
[NAME] | |
| 5. | s.333 RESOLUTION
Is a s.333 resolution in place authorising the two Managing Trustees named in box 4 to sign documents on behalf of the Managing Trustee body? | [Confirmed]
[ ] Scanned s.333 attached |
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B. Sale | ||
| 6. | Full postal address of property to be disposed of (sold): |
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| 7. | Does the sale include a burial land including any property used for the internment of ashes?
If yes, please ensure that a plan of the burial ground is included and surveyor’s advice on the burial ground lease. | Yes/No
[Confirmed] or N/A |
| 8. | Do the Managing Trustees wish to impose any Methodist use covenants on the sale?
If yes, please ensure that the surveyor’s advice on imposing these covenants is included.
(Only applicable where part of the property is to be retained by the Church.) | Yes/No |
| 9. | ANY OTHER POINTS? |
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C. Charity Law and Methodist Law and Policy considerations | ||
| 10. | Project number
Please confirm whether consent is already in place. | Project No. [NUMBER]
Final consent is/is not in place as at the date of this Sales Questionnaire.
Date of consent if it is in place at the date of this Sales Questionnaire: [DATE] |
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We will go through the following questions at Check-In Two and TMCP will complete for you
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| 11. | Is the QSR approved by TMCP and attached?
What date will the last update to the QSR expire: | [Yes] Date of approval:
[DATE] |
| 12. | Is the best price and adequate marketing certificate approved by TMCP and attached?
What price was confirmed in the certificate? | Yes Date of approval:
Best price confirmed at £[AMOUNT] |
| 13. | Are there any concerns that the buyer is “connected” to the charity for the purposes of s.118 of the Charities Act 2011?
If yes, please specify possible connection. | Yes/No |
| 14. | Is there anything particular that the panel solicitor needs to bear in mind when producing the sale documents?
| No/Yes (please give details) |
| 15. | Other relevant Methodist points to consider: |
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| To be completed after Check-In Two: | |
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| This Sales Questionnaire was discussed at the Check-In Two between TMCP and the Managing Trustees on: | Date:
TMCP officer(s) in attendance:
Managing Trustees in attendance:
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| TMCP confirms the answers given in Section C: | Confirmed by: [NAME]
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| The Managing Trustees confirms the answers given in this Sales Questionnaire: | Confirmed by: [NAME]
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What will happen after Check-In Two?
- TMCP will provide you with a completed Sales Questionnaire signed by TMCP for you to send to your chosen Panel Firm using the contact details on the Panel Solicitor page of TMCP’s website. This should ensure that the Panel Firm has the information they need from the beginning to move your case forward during Stage 4 (Conveyancing) up until Completion (Stage 6).
- TMCP will confirm:
EITHER:
(1) You need to take some initial steps before instructing your Panel Firm to avoid delays later. In this case we will highlight what these steps are;
OR
(2) You have everything in place to proceed to Stage 4 (Conveyancing) and can instruct your Panel Firm OR instruct them to commence the conveyancing stage if you have already instructed them to give preliminary advice following Check-In One.
=> In case (2) the Managing Trustees would need to:
- Send the completed Sales Questionnaire to the Panel Firm of your choice together with all of the documents listed in the Sales Questionnaire (Part 1 - Documents);
- Send the completed ID Questionnaire to the Panel Firm of your choice together with the appropriate ID documents IF YOU HAVE NOT SUBMITTED THIS TO YOUR PANEL FIRM ALREADY;
- Confirm to TMCP the date you instruct the Panel Firm to act for you.
Please refer to the Streamlining Sales Focus Note, the Summary Flow Chart and the accompanying guidance on the Streamlining Page for details of the next steps to be taken by the Managing Trustees as part of the Conveyancing, Exchange and Completion Stages.
If you have any queries in relation to the guidance in this document please contact TMCP Legal for further assistance.
| Footnotes: |
|---|
| 1 Please note that two authorised Managing Trustees will need to sign the documents relating to this transaction. Please ensure that these two people are able and available to deal with this at this time and have been duly authorised by the Managing Trustee body under what is known as a s.333 resolution, being a resolution passed by the Managing Trustee body under s.333 of the Charities Act 2011. It is recommended to authorise more than two potential signatories under your s.333 resolution to ensure that at least two of those authorised are available when the time comes. Please refer to TMCP’s Template s.333 Resolution on the TMCP website and ask TMCP Legal if you have any questions about this at Check-In Two. If your Managing Trustee body is registered with the Charity Commission, the two authorised Managing Trustees will need to be listed on the Charity Commission website as being charity trustees for the charity.
2 See footnote 1 |