• In order to comply with 2018 Solicitors Regulatory Authority on transparency we are required to provide guidance as to the fees that you might expect when dealing with a deceased persons Estate. Please be aware that these fees are expected to be a guide and the fees for Estates vary greatly depending on the contents of the Estate.

Charges

Reference to VAT is at its current rate of 20%

We usually work on an hourly rate basis as shown below:

• Partner £350 + VAT
• Associate Solicitor £250 + VAT
• Solicitor £175 – £200 + VAT

Grant Only – Excepted Estates

The amount of work which is required on an Estate will largely depend on the value of an Estate. A very simple Estate which is low value and does not contain a large amount of assets will require the probate application.  In order to obtain the Grant Only Service you will need to have obtained all date of death valuations for all assets and liabilities contained within the Estate.

This service will include:-

• Initial attendance to take instructions and obtain financial information
• Drafting of letter of advice and estate summary
• Completion of Online Probate Application
• Attendance to sign paperwork
• Submission of paperwork to Probate Registry
• Provision of the duly registered Grant of Probate

The expected legal fees for this service are £1,250.00 + VAT. There will also be a disbursement which is paid to the probate registry of £273 plus £1.50 per copy of the Grant of Probate.

Grant Only – IHT400

The work which is required on a Grant Only Service IHT400 is broadly similar to the above. In order to instruct us for this service you must have all of the requisite details for all assets and liabilities contained with the Estate. An IHT400 required in a number of circumstances and is a far longer and more complex tax form.

This service will include:-

• Initial attendance to take instructions and obtain financial information
• Drafting IHT400 and its schedules
• Letter of advice with IHT400
• Provision of Advice regarding the payment of inheritance tax
• Submission of IHT400 to HMRC
• Completion of Online Probate Application
• Submission of Documents to Probate Registry
• Provision of the duly registered Grant of Probate

The expected legal fees for this service are £2,000 + VAT. There will also be a disbursement which is paid to the probate registry of £273 plus £1.50 per copy of the Grant of Probate.  We would anticipate that a Grant Only Service for an IHT400 would take in the region of 6 months to complete.

Full Estate Service

As part of the full Estate Service we would take all of the work in relation to an Estate and complete this on your behalf. You would simply need to provide us with the paperwork which was being held by the deceased and some basic details about them and we would collect all of the requisite information.

This service can include:-

• Initial attendance to take instructions and obtain financial information
• Organising all paperwork which the deceased held at the date of death
• Full review of the Will if there is a Will in place
• Liaising with all beneficiaries of the Will or intestacy
• Contacting all financial institutions for date of death valuations
• Instructing accountants, financial advisors and land agents to value any business or agricultural assets or investment portfolios
• Preparing an IHT400 unless an excepted estate
• Writing a letter of advice 
• Submission of all forms to HMRC and the Probate Registry
• Payment of any Inheritance Tax
• Closing of all bank accounts
• Transfer of any properties, business or agricultural assets
• Payment of all legacies
• Preparation of an Estate account
• Instructing an accountant to deal with any outstanding income tax or capital gains tax matters
• Distribution of the Estate

The estimated fees for an Estate fall into three broad categories

• Simple Estate
• Mid-Range Estate
• Complex Estate

Disbursements for a full Estate Service can be expected to be £273 probate court fee plus £1.50 per copy, bankruptcy searches for each beneficiary of £2, Land Registry fee of £3 per property title required.  If there are a large amount liability in the Estate, it may be necessary to advertise for any further debts in this case statutory adverts may be required and will be in the region of £225 + VAT.

 Simple Estate – A simple Estate would often be covered by the following circumstances:-

• An IHT400 not being required
• One property and several bank accounts
• A simple Will or Intestacy
• No business or agricultural property

The legal fees for a simple Estate will be in the region of £3,000 + VAT – £6,000 + VAT and we would expect it to take in the region of 6 to 9 months

Mid-Level Estate – A mid-level Estate is likely to include:-

• A Will which contains a trust
• A complex intestacy
• Complex assets such as shares, multiple properties or investments
• A large number of bank accounts
• A large number of beneficiaries or charitable beneficiaries
• A simple IHT400 is required
• Simple business assets
• Inheritance tax is payable

The legal fees for a mid-level Estate will be in the region of £6,000 – £15,000 + VAT.  We would expect a mid-range Estate to take 12 to 18 months to complete.

Complex Estate – A complex Estate would often include:-

• Estate valued in excess of £2 million
• Complex business assets such as a number of shareholdings in private limited companies
• Partnership assets
• Agricultural assets
• A trust contained within the Will which requires administration
• An intestacy with a large number of beneficiaries which cannot be located
• Any non- UK based assets
• Complex IHT400
• Issues surrounding income tax or capital gains tax
• Agricultural Property Relief or Business Property Relief need to be claimed

The legal fees for a complex Estate are very difficult to estimate and will be provided on a case-by-case basis. The fees will be in excess of £15,000 + VAT.  We would expect a complex Estate to take from 18 to 36 months.

What’s not included in our price estimates that would increase costs or would be charged additionally, where we would provide a separate estimate:

• Registering the death of the deceased and/or arranging the funeral
• Tracing a missing Will or missing executors
• Administering any trusts resulting from the terms of the Will
• Preparing Deeds of Variation
• Dealing with any tax returns relating to before/after the deceased’s death
• Dealing with any tax planning issues relating to the estate of any predeceased spouse
• If the matter becomes disputed or any claims are made against the estate
• Dealing with the sale of the property
• Experts’ fees for valuation of items held by the deceased
• Oath fees (in order to apply for Grant of Probate)
• Missing share certificate indemnity fees
• Unallocated asset register search (if needed) to see if there are any dormant accounts and shareholdings
• Reviewing retrospective care funding matter concerning the deceased