WILLS & PROBATE
Whether you need advice on Wills, Trusts and Inheritance Tax or help with
the administration of an estate after someone has passed away, you want a lawyer who will guide you through the process with sensitivity and in a clear, jargon-free way.
We aim to fully understand your circumstances and give you tailored advice so you can be confident that your needs and wishes will be taken care of, whatever the future brings.
Getting started with Wills & Probate
When you contact our Wills & Probate team, they will arrange a consultation with you where they will discuss your circumstances and advise you on the best course of action. You can make an appointment at our office or depending on your needs, our lawyers can offer home visits.
Combining in-depth knowledge with a friendly, professional approach, our wills team are relied upon to deal with sensitive legal issues around trusts and inheritance tax planning, probate, and administration of estates, as well as handling contested probate and wills disputes.
Our Wills & Probate Team is supervised by Mr. Muhammad Sohail Babar Khan a Solicitor and director of the firm. He is supported by other experienced solicitors of the firm as well as trainees and paralegals.
Why should I get advice on planning for the future?
Deciding to make a will or set up a Lasting power of Attorney (LPA) can sometimes feel like “tempting fate”, but preparing for the future needn’t be daunting. Our lawyers will guide you through the process step-by-step, ensuring that the final document accurately and clearly reflects your wishes.
By seeking advice from a specialist wills and trusts solicitor, nothing is left to chance, and if anything were to happen to you, your estate will be dealt with exactly as planned. Your legacy is important and getting expert assistance will bring peace of mind and reassurance that your loved ones will be looked after according to your wishes.
I’m worried about my elderly parents – can you help?
As we reach later life, it is important to think not just about protecting your property and assets, but to also think about what would happen if you are no longer able to make decisions for yourself.
Our wills & probate team understand the specific issues that can arise in cases involving elderly people, particularly those who lack mental capacity due to a condition such as dementia. They can advise on care fee planning and provide clear, practical advice on setting up LPAs. In the event of someone losing mental capacity without a will or LPA in place, they can also assist with deputy ships and statutory wills.
I’m an executor of a will – can you help?
Our team deals with the full range of wills and probate services and can help with all aspects of probate and the administration of an estate after someone has died.
Offering a completely flexible service based on your needs and the complexity of the estate, they can provide basic services from completing the Grant of Probate application, to a fully comprehensive service including paying creditors and notifying beneficiaries. Whatever service you need, you will always be treated with the utmost compassion and understanding.
What fees will I pay?
The fees you pay for your Wills & Probate work will depend on your circumstances and the work we need to carry out for you. Please see as follows:
| Applications for Grant of Representation only (where we do not administer the full estate) |
| This work is dealt with on a fixed fee basis.
For applications for Grant of Representation where the Estate does not exceed £325,000 and we are able to submit form IHT205 (or under £1 million and exempt of inheritance tax as the Estate is passing to spouse or charity and we are able to submit IHT205) the costs will be £800 plus Vat chargeable at 20% and disbursements being Land Registry fee of £3.00 plus VAT at 20%(£3.60) and the probate fee of £273.00 plus £1.50 for every sealed copy of the Grant required.
For applications for Grant of Representation, where we are able to submit IHT205, but we also need to complete IHT217 to transfer a late spouse’s unused inheritance nil rate band allowance the costs will be £1000 plus VAT at 20% and disbursements being the Land Registry Fee of £3.00 plus VAT at 20% and the probate fee £273.00 plus £1.50 for every sealed copy of the Grant required.
For applications for Grant of Representation where it is necessary to complete and submit form IHT400 and the various schedules to the HMRC. The cost will be £2500 plus VAT at 20% and disbursements being the Land Registry Fee of £3.00 plus VAT at 20% and the probate fee £273.00 plus £1.50 for every sealed copy of the Grant required.
The following is a summary of the work involved in applying for a grant of representation only: 1. Interview with you to discuss the terms of the deceased willintestacy and to go through the assets and liabilities in the estate. You will be required to provide us with details of all assets in the estate. We will not be contacting any of the financial institutions directly ourselves. 2. Draft legal statement and inheritance tax forms. Calculate if there is inheritance tax to pay. Send to the client in draft form. 3. Submit application to the Probate Registry (and HMRC if applicable) to obtain grant of representation. 4. When a grant of representation is received, we will send the grant to you for you to deal with the administration of the estate.
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| Administration of the Estates (General fees, and some of your work)
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| We calculate our costs on an early spent basis by estimating how many hours it will take to administer the estate, based on the assets in the estate, the value of the estate and the beneficiaries.
The work will be dealt with by one of our solicitors, at a rate of £270.00 or £348.00 per hour plus VAT at 20%. They may be assisted by trainee or a paralegal at an hourly rate of £186.00 per hour plus VAT at 20%. Once we have established how many hours, we believe it may take to administer the estate. We then provide clients with a quote based on time spent and the hourly rate or a fixed fee alternative so that clients can choose which option they prefer.
The following is a summary of all work when we deal with the full administration of an estate: 1. Interview with you to advise on the terms of the deceased’s will/intestacy provisions and discuss the duties of the executors. 2. Register the death, arrange the funeral. Check the property is secured, deal with personal belongings of clearance of the property if applicable. 3. Go through the assets and liabilities and write the initial letters to Banks, Building Societies, utilities (including council tax) and insurance. 4. Submit statutory notices if applicable. 5. Draft legal statement and then inheritance tax forms. Calculate if there is inheritance tax to pay. Sent to the client in draft form. 6. Submit application to the probate registry (and HMRC if applicable) to obtain grant of representation. 7. Once grant of representation is received, collect in the assets, and pay outstanding liabilities. 8. Pay any liabilities, any legacies, or interim distributions to the residuary beneficiaries. 9. Submit bankruptcy checks. 10. Prepare estate accounts for approval by the executors. 11. Finalise the income tax position of the deceased. 12. Pay out balance to residuary beneficiaries.
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| Administration of the state under £325,000
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| Applying for the grant, collecting, and distributing of the assets
We anticipate this will take between 12: and 16 hours at a rate of £270 per hour plus VAT at 20%.
The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstance of the matter. For example, if there is one beneficiary, and no property, costs will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts, cost will be at the higher end.
We will handle the full process for you. This quote is for Estates where: · There is a valid will. · There is no more than one property. · There are no more than two bank or building society accounts. · There are no other intangible assets. · There are three beneficiaries. · There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise, this is likely to lead to an increase in costs. · There is no inheritance tax payable, and the executors do not need to submit a full account to HMRC. · There is no capital gains tax.
Disbursements are in addition and will be: · Probate application fee of £273.00 plus £1.50 for every sealed copy. · Bankruptcy only land charges department search (£2.00 per beneficiary plus VAT at 20%) · £200.00 post in the London Gazette – protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors. · £150.00 post in a local newspaper – this also helps to protect against unexpected claims. · Land Registry Surveyor, £3.00 plus VAT at 20%. Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to 3rd parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursement on your behalf to ensure a smooth process.
Services not included in the cost. · If there is no Will, or the estate consists of any shareholdings (stocks and bonds) there are likely to be additional costs that could range significantly depending on the estate and how it is to be dealt with. We can give you a more accurate quote once we have more information. · If any additional copies of the grant required, they will cost £1.50 (one per asset usually). · Estate Agents may need to be instructed to provide a valuation for the property. · Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.
How Long will this take? On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with in 8–12 months, depending on when the property is sold. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 12 weeks from the date on which we receive our client care letter back, duly, signed and approved. Collecting cash assets, then follows after the Grant is obtained, which can then take between 3–6 weeks.
Once this has been done, we can, then, depending on circumstances, make an interim distribution, which normally takes 2 weeks.
Once the property is sold, we will then be able to finalise the administration of the estate.
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| Administration of estates above £325,000 and where there is no inheritance tax to pay.
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| Applying for the grant, collecting, and distributing the assets.
We anticipate this will take between 22–28 hours of work at £270 per hour plus VAT at 20%, plus disbursements.
The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if there is one beneficiary or no property, cost will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts, costs will be at the higher end.
We will handle the full process for you. This quote is for Estates where: · There is a valid well. · There is no more than one property. · There are no more than five bank or building society accounts. · There are no other intangible assets. · There are no more than five beneficiaries. · There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise, this is likely to lead to an increase in costs. · There is no inheritance tax payable, but a claim needs to be made to claim a deceased spouse’s unused nil rate band and the executors need to submit a full account to HMRC in order to claim the residence. Nil rate band, and unused residence nil rate band from the deceased spouse’s estate. · There are no claims made against the estate.
Disbursements are in addition and will be: · Probate application fee of £273.00 plus £1.50 for every sealed copy. · Bankruptcy only land charges department search (£2.00 per beneficiary plus VAT at 20%) · £200.00 post in the London Gazette – protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors. · £150.00 post in a local newspaper – this also helps to protect against unexpected claims. · Land Registry Surveyor, £3.00 plus VAT at 20%.
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to 3rd parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursement on your behalf to ensure a smooth process.
Services not included in the cost. · If there is no Will, or the estate consists of any shareholdings (stocks and bonds) there are likely to be additional costs that could range significantly depending on the estate and how it is to be dealt with. We can give you a more accurate quote once we have more information. · If any additional copies of the grant required, they will cost £1.50 (one per asset usually). · Estate Agents may need to be instructed to provide a valuation for the property. · Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included. · Dealing with the tax return on behalf of the estate.
How Long will this take? On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with in 8–12 months, depending on when the property is sold. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 4-6 months from the date on which we receive our client care letter back, duly, signed and approved. Collecting cash assets, then follows after the Grant is obtained, which can then take between 3–6 weeks. Once this has been done, we can, then, depending on circumstances, make an interim distribution, which normally takes 2 weeks.
Once the property is sold, we will then be able to finalise the administration of the estate.
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| Administration of Estate over £1,000,000 and where there is Inheritance Tax to Pay
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| Applying for the grant, collecting, and distributing the assets.
We anticipate this will take between 48–60 hours of work at £270 per hour plus VAT at 20%, plus disbursements.
The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if there is one beneficiary or no property, cost will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts, costs will be at the higher end.
We will handle the full process for you. This quote is for Estates where: · There is a valid well. · There is no more than one property. · There are no more than 8 bank or building society accounts. · There are no other intangible assets. · There are no more than 10 beneficiaries. · There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise, this is likely to lead to an increase in costs. · There is no inheritance tax payable, but a claim needs to be made to claim a deceased spouse’s unused nil rate band and the executors need to submit a full account to HMRC in order to claim the residence. Nil rate band, and unused residence nil rate band from the deceased spouse’s estate. · There are no claims made against the estate.
Disbursements are in addition and will be: · Probate application fee of £273.00 plus £1.50 for every sealed copy. · Bankruptcy only land charges department search (£2.00 per beneficiary plus VAT at 20%) · £200.00 post in the London Gazette – protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors. · £150.00 post in a local newspaper – this also helps to protect against unexpected claims. · Land Registry Surveyor, £3.00 plus VAT at 20%. Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to 3rd parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursement on your behalf to ensure a smooth process.
Services not included in the cost. · If there is no Will, or the estate consists of any shareholdings (stocks and bonds) there are likely to be additional costs that could range significantly depending on the estate and how it is to be dealt with. We can give you a more accurate quote once we have more information. · If any additional copies of the grant required, they will cost £1.50 (one per asset usually). · Estate Agents may need to be instructed to provide a valuation for the property. · Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.
How Long will this take? On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with in 12–18 months, depending on when the property is sold. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 6-8 months from the date on which we receive our client care letter back, duly, signed and approved. Collecting cash assets, then follows after the grant is obtained, which can then take between 3–6 weeks. Once this has been done, we can, then, depending on circumstances, make an interim distribution, which normally takes 2 weeks.
Once the property is sold, we will then be able to finalise the administration of the estate. |
