Wills and Probate: Our Services & Fees
Our Probate Team
Presently these services are provided by Mr Richard Barca, the Senior Partner of the firm, whose hourly rate is £300 + VAT (currently at 20%). He will be assisted from time to time, by a trainee solicitor at an hourly rate of £150 + VAT and the fees quoted below will be adjusted accordingly where the lower rate is applicable.
Further details of the members of our team including qualifications and experience can be accessed here
Wills
Our experienced team aims to make the process of drafting your Will and those of your family members as straightforward and as less stressful as possible. Your initial instructions are of paramount importance and our Wills’ questionnaire is designed to identify the nature of your estate and how you wish its assets to be distributed by your executors. We will advise you regarding any applicable law and draft your Will to reflect your wishes.
Our Prices: for a simple Will (involving no more than 1½ hours of a solicitor’s time) is £300 +VAT. More complicated Wills are priced according to the amount of work involved and in accordance with the hourly rates detailed above.
Probate
Probate refers to the entire process of administering a deceased’s estate. It includes the assessment of its assets and monetary value, the settlement of any debts, the calculation and payment of any inheritance tax liability [IHT] and the distribution of the residual estate, including land, to benefactors. Where there is a valid Will, distribution will be in accordance with its terms, but where a person has died ‘intestate’ i.e. without a Will, the residual estate will be distributed in compliance with the ‘Rules of Intestacy’ laid down in statute. Only spouses, civil partners, children, and other close relatives can inherit under these rules.
Prior to distribution of an estate the named Executor(s) in a Will must seek a Grant of Probate from the UK’s Probate Registry, but in the absence of a Will the Rules of Intestacy set-out who can apply for a Grant (Letters) of Administration.
Probate ends once the residual estate has been distributed.
Non-contentious and Contentious Probate
In the majority of cases the manner in which a residual estate is distributed among benefactors in accordance with the terms of a Will is accepted by the deceased relatives and friends, but on occasions it is challenged by a person or persons who consider they have been unjustly denied an inheritance and might, among other claims, dispute the validity of the Will. Probate then becomes ‘contentious’ and complex and might only be resolved by court proceedings.
Wilson Barca is highly experienced in both contentious and non-contentious probate, but please note that the fees quoted below relate only to non-contentious matters. Details of the additional work involved in a contentious probate and estimates of related fees will be provided following an initial assessment by ourselves.
Our Fees for Non-contentious Probate
Every estate is different and the complexity of its administration will depend on the instructions left in the Will, the nature and extent of its assets, the claims of any creditors and the number of the beneficiaries it has. As a result our fees are calculated by the application of the solicitor’s hourly rate and the range reflects the variation in the time spent dealing with these variable elements in estates.
The time estimates and fees involved in each stage of probate are detailed below:
Checking the validity of any Will (30 mins) OR identifying the Beneficiaries by application of the Rules of Intestacy (30 mins); £150 +VAT
Obtaining IHT reference; and
Identifying the assets and liabilities of the estate; and
Completing the necessary IHT forms (2 to 6 hrs dependent upon extent of assets and liabilities); £600 - £1,800 +VAT
Submitting IHT forms (12 Mins); £60 +VAT
Obtaining the IHT calculation and probate reference; and
Completing and submission of the Probate or Administration Application – (2-3 hrs, dependent upon assets held); 600 - £900 +VAT
Selling assets (4-12 hours dependant upon the number and nature of assets to be sold) £1,200 - £3,600 +VAT
Please note: the above estimated fee does not include work required to sell a property, house or flat which will incur the additional costs detailed in our Conveyancing section.
Calculation of the Invoice;(18 mins); £90 +VAT
Calculation of the division of assets (1-3 hours); £300 - £900 +VAT
Distribution of the estate (2-3 hours); £600 - £900 +VAT
Total Time: 12 hrs – 28 hrs
Total Fees: £3,600 - £8,400 +VAT
Please note: the above ranges of time and fees are not fixed parameters and are based on the experience of multiple probate cases. Should a particular stage(s) require more or less time than indicated above our fees will be adjusted accordingly.
Disbursements
These are expenses payable to third parties and not covered by our professional fees and may include the following:
Valuation Fees (to establish the value of the deceased assets at the time of death); £500 -£800 +VAT
Clearance Fees (where it is necessary to remove goods e.g. furniture from a property); the cost will vary considerably depending upon the amount of goods to be cleared and the rates of local contractors.
Land Registry Fees; £6 - £24
Probate court fee; currently for estates valued at £5,001 or more it is £300 (No VAT); there is no fee for estates valued at £5,000 or less.
Details of any changes can be found at www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate/fees
Swearing of the oath (per executor). £7 - £15
Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches (£4 per beneficiary).
Post in The London Gazette (Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors.) Currently £125.80 + VAT
Post in a Local Newspaper (This also helps to protect against unexpected claims.) Approx £150 +VAT and can be linked to a posting in the London Gazette.
Timescale for Probate
On average, non-contentious probate is completed within 6-18 months. Typically, obtaining the Grant of Probate/Administration takes 16 weeks. Collecting and preparing assets for distribution then follows, which can take between 6-16 weeks simultaneously with obtaining a Grant. Once this has been done, we can distribute the assets, which normally takes 2-4 weeks.