Our Fees - Wills & Probate - all fees are exclusive of VAT

 Probate – applying for the Grant of Probate, collecting and distributing the assets

Each transaction is unique and tailored to your particular requirements and we will provide you with a quote for your particular legal issue at the outset of a new matter. Therefore, the information provided here is meant to provide and should be considered as, a general guide for our costs only.

We appreciate you will want Probate to be dealt with as smoothly and quickly as possible. Once instructed we will set out the process and provide you with a personal service.

What will it cost?

• We generally charge on a fixed fee basis. With complicated cases we may sometimes instead charge at an hourly rate in which case the final cost will depend on how many hours of work we have carried out. For example, if there is one beneficiary and few assets, costs will be  lower than if there are multiple beneficiaries and multiple assets.
  
  
• Depending on the value of the estate, it may attract inheritance tax which if any is due, will be payable in addition to our costs. You can find out more about this using HMRC calculator at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hmrc-tools-and-calculators. If applicable we will prepare HMRC forms.
   

• Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included in our Probate costs and will be charged at a fixed price separately (please refer to our conveyancing costs).
  
  
• Each case will be unique. We will keep you advised of costs as the Probate proceeds and may produce interim bills every three months.

For illustration purposes only:
Assuming all of the assets are in the UK.
• There is a valid will.
• There is no more than one property.
• There are no more than 2-3 bank or building society accounts.
• There are no other intangible assets.
• There are 2-4 beneficiaries.
• There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise this is likely to lead to an increase in costs.
• There is no inheritance tax payable and the executors do not need to submit a full account to HMRC.
• There are no claims made against the estate.

We would charge a fixed fee between £3,000.00-8,000.00 plus VAT , disbursements and expenses.

What factors will potentially increase costs?
For illustration purposes only: For more complicated and/or larger estates e.g.
• There is no Will.
• The Will contains complex trust provisions.
• There have been a large number of lifetime gifts made by the deceased in the 7 tax years prior to his or her death.
• There is a large Portfolio of investments.
• There are a large number of beneficiaries.
• There is more than one property.
• There is a dispute between the beneficiaries.

The hours of work will be greater so the total cost will be greater resulting in fees in the region of £8,001.00- £20,000.00 plus VAT ,disbursements and expenses.

What are disbursements?

These are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, e.g. the probate application fee.
We will go through all expected disbursements and expenses with you at the outset of the probate and keep you advised as the matter proceeds.

How long will this take?

The administration of an uncontested small estate can generally be dealt with within 6-12 months. The time taken to issue the Grant of Probate is dependent upon the probate office. Collecting in the assets may take several months. Once this has been done we can distribute the assets which normally takes 1-2 months but this will be longer if you decide to dispose of assets first e.g. sell a property. Each case will be different and delays can occur as we are dependent on hearing from third parties.

What is included in our fee ?

As part of our fixed fee we will:

• Provide you with a dedicated and experienced probate solicitor to work on your matter.

• Identify the legally appointed executors or administrators and beneficiaries.

• Accurately identify the type of Grant of Representation (e.g probate) application you will require.

• Obtain the relevant documents required to make the application.

• Complete the Grant of Representation application and the relevant HMRC forms.

• Draft a legal oath for you to swear.

• Make the application on your behalf.

• Obtain the Grant of Representation.

• Collect and distribute all assets in the estate.