Probate (Uncontested Cases Where All Assets Are in the UK)

How do we charge?

If it is necessary to obtain a Grant of Probate or a Grant of Letters of Administration (the “Grant”) then we can assist in a number of ways depending on your individual circumstances. This may be in the extraction of the Grant only, or in connection with the whole/part of the Estate administration and we can provide you with an accurate estimate for our involvement depending on your specific requirements.

Hourly rates

	£ excl VAT at 20%	£ incl VAT at 20%
Partner/Consultant	£350.00	£420.00
Associate	£300.00	£360.00
Senior Solicitor or Senior Chartered Legal Executive	£260.00	£312.00
Solicitor or Chartered Legal Executive	£220.00	£264.00
Senior Legal Assistant	£220.00	£264.00
Legal Assistant	£175.00	£210.00
Trainee Solicitor	£150 to £165.00	£180 to £198.00

Our charges for advising you will depend on a number of factors. However, for illustration purposes, we have outlined our estimate of the total costs for assisting with the application for a Grant of a non-taxable Estate, the application for a Grant for a taxable Estate and the full administration of a straightforward Estate.

Full Administration of an Estate

An example of a straightforward Estate would be:-

• There is a valid Will
• The Executors referred to in the Will are able to act and there is no requirement for Deeds of Renunciation to be executed
• There is one property in the sole name of the Deceased person
• There are no more than three bank or building society accounts
• There are no other assets
• The Will does not include any age contingent trusts, discretionary trusts or an Immediate Post Death Interest trust.
• There is no Inheritance tax payable and an Inheritance Tax Account is not required
• There are no claims against the Estate and no disputes between beneficiaries on the division of the assets. If disputes arise this is likely to lead to an increase in the costs and separate advice may be necessary for the Executors
• There are no more than two pecuniary legacies in the Will, no more than three residuary beneficiaries and the whereabouts of all beneficiaries are known
• The beneficiaries all have UK bank accounts and are individuals or Charities registered in the UK
• We anticipate our costs estimate for the full administration of an Estate as described above will be between £6,000 - £9,000 excl VAT at 20% (£7,200 - £10,800 incl VAT at 20%).

Grant Only – Non-Taxable

We would assume that the Estate was as set out above but we would assist with preparing the application for the Grant only based on the information provided by the Executors. We would not make contact with any financial institutions or deal with calling in the assets of the Estate, paying liabilities or making distributions. On receipt of the Grant the Executors will deal with the remaining aspects of the Estate themselves.

If an Inheritance Tax Account is not required, we anticipate our costs for obtaining the Grant only as described above will be between £1,500 – £2,500 excl VAT at 20% (£1,800 - £3,000 incl VAT at 20%).

If the Estate is not taxable but an Inheritance Tax Account is required then we anticipate the costs for obtaining the Grant only as described above will be between £3,000 - £5,000 excl VAT at 20% (£3,600 - £6,000 incl VAT at 20%).

Grant Only – Taxable

We would prepare the Inheritance Tax Account and application for the Grant based on the information provided by Executors. We would not make contact with any financial institutions or deal with calling in the assets of the Estate, paying liabilities or making distributions. On receipt of the Grant the Executors will deal with the remaining aspects of the Estate themselves.

If we are instructed to act on a Grant only basis in relation to an Estate which is subject to Inheritance Tax then we anticipate our costs will start from £5,000 excl VAT at 20% (£6,000 incl VAT at 20%) depending on the complexity.

If the Estate is more complex then the costs are likely to be more. The following factors are likely to lead to additional costs:-

• If the Will appoints the firm (or successor practice) to act as Executors
• If the Will contains a contingent age trust, discretionary trust or an Immediate Post Death Interest trust
• Visiting the property and completing a document search
• Arranging the buildings insurance and clearance of the property
• Registering the death and arranging the funeral
• Interim distributions to residuary beneficiaries
• Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the Estate
• Completion of an Inheritance Tax account
• Reconciliation of lifetime gifts
• Claims for Agricultural Property Relief or Business Relief
• If the Estate is subject to Inheritance Tax
• Advice in relation to Capital Gains Tax and any steps to mitigate gains
• Completion of lifetime and Estate Income Tax Returns
• The Deceased owned share portfolios
• The Deceased own more than one property
• The Deceased owned foreign assets
• The Deceased was not domiciled in England and Wales
• Liaising with Pension Trustees in connection with Death in Service Benefits or ongoing Pension payments
• Liaising with the Department for Work and Pensions Recovery from Estates Debt Management Department
• Dealing with any Trusts that are deemed to form part of the Deceased’s Estate for Inheritance Tax purposes
• Potential disputes between beneficiaries or third parties

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. If there are funds in the Estate these will be used to pay for disbursements. However, if Estate funds are not available then we will ask the Executor to pay for disbursements which they will be reimbursed when the estate is in funds.

Examples of possible disbursements include, but are not limited to:

• Probate Registry application fee for issuing the Grant – this is currently £300 plus £1.50 per Court sealed copy of the Grant (No VAT).
• Copies of Land Registry title entries for properties £7 each excl VAT at 20% (£8.40 incl VAT at 20%)
• UK Bankruptcy Searches against each beneficiary prior to a payment being made to them - £6 per name excl VAT at 20% (£7.20 incl VAT at 20%)
• Foreign Bankruptcy Searches as per individual quote depending on Country of residence
• Statutory Advertisements in the London Gazette - £98 excl VAT at 20% (£117.60 incl VAT at 20%).
• Statutory Advertisement in one local paper in the region of £120 excl VAT at 20% (£144 incl VAT at 20%)
• Commissioner’s fee - £5 per Personal Representative plus £2 per exhibit (No VAT)
• Asset and liability search - £195 excl VAT at 20% (£234 incl VAT at 20%)
• Unoccupied property insurance - As per individual quote from insurance company
• Compliance screening fee per beneficiary - £5 excl VAT at 20% (£6 incl VAT at 20%)
• Travel costs – mileage is charged at 45p per mile excl VAT at 20% (54p per mile incl VAT at 20%) and is charged if we visit you or other third parties away from the office. Travel costs may also include any train and bus fares incurred plus VAT at 20%.
• Electronic identification and verification fee per individual £5 excl VAT at 20% (£6 incl VAT at 20%).
• Electronic identification and verification fee per beneficiary £5 excl VAT at 20% (£6 incl VAT at 20%).

Some of these expenses will be payable prior to submitting the application for the Grant. There may also be other expenses such as valuation fees* and, if applicable, we will advise you accordingly, but generally:

• RICS property valuation fee, typically in the range of £500 to £1,000 incl VATat 20% (£416.67 to £833.33 excl VAT at 20%)*.
• Chattels valuation fee, typically in the range of £250 to £600 including VATat 20% (£208.33 to £416.67 excl VAT at 20%)*.

*Not usually required for a simple Probate case.

How long will my matter take?

The timeframe for assisting you with the administration of the Estate outlined in this illustration will depend on several factors. We will be in close contact with HM Revenue & Customs, HM Courts & Tribunals Service and all financial institutions relevant to the Estate (if instructed on a Full Administration basis) to ensure that the administration of the Estate progresses as quickly as possible. Please be aware that there could be third-party delays which are outside our control which could affect the timescales provided, including with HMRC, the Probate Registry and financial institutions. However, we would endeavour to keep you updated regarding timescales.  

If the Estate requires completion of an Inheritance Tax Account, HMRC are currently stating it will take 20 working days to issue the Code which allows us to complete the application for the Grant. The Probate Registry are currently stating timescales of 16 weeks to issue the Grant.

On receipt of the Grant the Executors can call in the assets of the Estate, sell any property in the Estate and arrange payments to the beneficiaries. If there are only cash assets then this could be completed within 3 to 6 months. However, if the Estate is complex or there is property to be sold, it can take longer and we will be able to provide guidance based on the circumstances of an Estate.

Who will be advising you?

A suitably qualified member(s) of our Wills, Probate, Tax & Trusts team  will work on your matter, supervised by partner and team head Jonathan Gater or another senior member of the team. You can find out more about the members of our team below.

• Sophie Ashford
• Minnaar Badenhorst
• Graham Benwell
• Emily Boorman
• Anne Call
• Caroline Casagranda
• Kelly Chandler
• Sara Dalmazzo-Auckland
• Katherine Dimmock
• Jonathan Gater
• Kirsti Harvey
• Kristina Kroupova
• Louise Nelson
• Louise Ryan
• Elizabeth Short
• Charlotte Smith
• Andrew Smith
• Sophie Stone

Who to contact for further
information or legal advice?

Please contact us for further information or use our online assistant to provide further information. Our confidential and easy to use online tool may also enable you to find out more about the process ahead, including the key steps and likely timelines, your role and obligations and how we can help you.