Wills

Vat is currently charged at 20%

The timescale for completing your Will, will be based on relevant circumstances (including any urgency) which we are happy to discuss with you. We will undertake all necessary work to complete your Will and if you attend the office to deal with signing and witnessing, we will provide the 2 witnesses required. We are also happy to store your Will free of charge.

Tax advice is not included in the fees outlined above. We are happy to provide such advice based on the hourly charging rate of the fee earner concerned. See below for details of hourly charging rates

Probate

Grant of Probate/Letters of Administration – from £1,500 plus Vat

We are happy to discuss fees based on:

1.an hourly rate (please see below for details of hourly charging rates); or
2.a percentage of the value of the estate; or
3.a combination of the above; or
4.a fixed fee.

There are various stages involved in administering an estate – ascertaining if there is a Will, identifying and obtaining valuations of assets and any debts of the deceased, completing the papers to apply for the Grant of Representation including the appropriate Inheritance Tax form when required and arranging payment of any Inheritance Tax when applicable. Once the Grant of Representation is obtained, dealing with the assets and paying any liabilities, finalising any tax issues (this can include lifetime tax affairs and tax during the administration period as well as Inheritance Tax), preparing accounts and distributing the estate.

Fees will depend mainly on the size and composition of the estate and how much of the administration work you would like us to undertake. Generally, we are happy to undertake as much or as little of the administration work as required. Clients often prefer to obtain all valuation information themselves and instruct us to deal with HMRC in respect of inheritance tax and HMCTS in respect of the application for probate/letters of administration.

The fee given above applies to a simple matter where no Inheritance Tax is payable and it is not necessary for a full Inheritance Tax return to be submitted to HMRC. We will advise you of the information required to apply for the Grant of Representation which you obtain and provide to us and we will then complete the necessary papers to apply for the Grant of Representation on your behalf.

In a similar scenario but where a full Inheritance Tax return is required and/or Inheritance Tax is payable the fee is likely to range from £2,500 to £5,000 plus VAT.

Where we undertake all aspects of an administration on your behalf as outlined above (and could also include other work, for example, tracing beneficiaries) fees could range from around £2,500 - £5,000 plus VAT for a simple estate to £50,000 plus VAT or more for a very complex estate although this would be unusual. On average, the fees for a full administration are likely to be in the region of £5,000 to £15,000 plus VAT.

Our probate costs do not include conveyancing fees where there is a property (or properties) to sell or transfer which will be quoted separately.

In addition to our fees, disbursements (expenses payable to third parties) may be incurred, some of which attract VAT and some of which do not. These can include the probate Court fee - £273 plus £1.50 per copy of the Grant, no VAT, Land Registry Official Copy of Register Entries - 3.60 including VAT, Bankruptcy search fees - £2.40 including VAT per search, Statutory Trustee Act Notices (advertisements for unknown creditors) approximately £200 to £250 + VAT and Land Registry registration fees when a property is transferred - £20 to £500 depending on the value of the property, no VAT.

The fees given here are indicative only. Please telephone us to discuss your matter and full details of the fee structure we agree and the likely disbursements will be provided at the outset.

Timescales will depend on many variables (including whether or not the estate is subject to inheritance tax) which we are happy to discuss with you. HM Courts and Tribunal Service currently take approximately 8 weeks to issue grants of probate/letters of administration from the date of application.

A full administration for a simple estate may be concluded in 3-4 months, most administrations will take 6-12 months to complete, in exceptional cases a complex estate may take several years to complete.

Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs)

This fixed charge includes our acting as certificate provider and dealing with the application to register the LPA with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG).

In addition to the above, there is a fee payable to the OPG to register the LPA (which must be done before the LPA can be used) of £82 for each document registered. Vat is not payable on the registration fee.

We will aim to complete your LPA within timescales required by you but as mentioned, LPA’s must be registered with the OPG before they can be used and the registration process is currently taking approximately 12 weeks.

Hourly Charging Rates

All fee earners in this department specialise in these areas of work and have at least 15 years of relevant experience.

Hourly charging rates will be in the range of £295 - £335 plus Vat per hour depending on length of experience, whether or not the fee earner is also a partner and/or a member of the Society of Trust and Estates Practitioners.