Probate is a process of dealing with money, property, and other possessions of a deceased person.
Money, property, and other possessions of a person who died is called their ‘estate’. And probate is the legal right to deal with it.
Probate involves complicated legal, financial and tax work which can include the need to access bank accounts, settle debts, sell assets and other.
Once you are provided with a written quote it won’t change unless we were given incorrect information or circumstances considerably change.
Contact the Head of our Property Department, Mr Pankaj Patel via pankaj@brooke.law
The services in relation to individuals are:
the collection and distribution of assets belonging to a person following their death, where these are within the UK and the matters are not contested.
Not contested means they are not disputed or challenged.
A grant of probate:
A grant of probate is a legal document when the person left a will. A will describes how the assets should be distributed.
When a person passes away without a will, then a grant of letters of administration is used. No will means that the law determines who should receive what.
Both documents work in much the same way, giving a named person the authority to deal with the estate.
After the probated is granted, the family member or the executor begin to deal with the person’s assets.
We support bereaved individuals and families. Honesty, openness, and care are core values of our communication and the services we provide.
The timeframe, the stages, the service provided:
The initial work would require a meeting with the Executors review the will apply for information about the deceased and the details and extent of the estate. Determine the Inheritance tax situation and depending on the extent of the estate determine the correct Inland revenue accounts to submit to HMRC pay any tax applicable and seek clearance prior to making a formal application for probate.
The time frame very much depends on the information available to the executor, the time it takes to get all the required information and once received and collated for Inland Revenue account, the time it takes to get the revenue clearance – and then the application made for Probate.
Given that there is only one Probate office it is difficult to say how long it will take to obtain a sealed grant, but once received the executors have duty to collect the estate and distribute to the beneficiaries.
Probate is one area of the law which is time intensive and where numerous factors determine the pace at which the results can be obtained.
Probate also means that one has to deal with HMRC for the Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Income Tax matters of the deceased person.
The quote is based on the individual circumstances of the person’s estate but not so long ago the costs for such work was expressed as a percentage of the Property assets and the other assets, the percentage was between 2 to 2.5% of each element.
We charge on a fixed fee basis ranging from £3,000 to £30,000 excluding VAT (20%) and disbursements. The higher end applying in exceptional and complicated cases.
The quote depends on complexity of an estate – the nature and value of the assets, whether there is a will, and how many beneficiaries there are.
Example of a simple estate:
When the deceased simply leave the entire estate to the surviving spouse and or adult children, there being no trusts. The extent of the estate would be within the Inheritance tax Nil Rate band and or just slightly above. All beneficiaries are identifiable and alive and there are no disputes between them.
Example of a complex estate:
A substantial one as it involves multiple beneficiaries including minority interest under trusts created. There may be issues as to who can apply for the grant of probate, extensive enquires need to be made to ascertain the extent of the estate and all the beneficiaries. Depending on the Inheritance tax liability consideration may need to be given to Deeds of variations. The estate may involve a number of property polices both UK based and overseas.
Disbursements and additional services:
Disbursements and additional services not included in the fixed fee quotation could be:
-when a property is to be sold, an estate agent, conveyancer, or other will be appointed to act on your behalf
Below is a list of disbursements including Estimated cost per item and overall Estimate (where applicable):
Bankruptcy search–
Search done to ensure that no personal representatives or beneficiaries of the estate are bankrupt=£2 per search; £18
Oath fee-
Required to swear an oath to obtain the Grant of Representation (this may dependant from solicitor to solicitor who administer such oaths but normally)=£5
Exhibit fee-
The will and any codicils – a charge per exhibit when sworn with the oath=£4 per exhibit
Probate Court application fee-
To obtain the Grant of Representation=£155
Copies of the Grant of Representation-
Institutions relevant to the estate require an original court copy=1.50p per copy; £3
Statutory advert in London Gazette-
Advertising the estate to reduce the risk of future claims being made (can be more depends very much on the London Gazette and fee structure in place at relevant time)=£70
Early distribution insurance-
Instead of statutory advert-From £150-£225 the average
Unclaimed Asset register search-
If the estate has any assets registered as unclaimed=£25
Standard disbursement estimate: advert in London Gazette + local paper. Where applicable disbursement are including VAT =£400
Standard disbursement estimate: Early distribution insurance, excl. Probate Court application fee. Where applicable disbursement are including VAT =£300
