Costs

Our costs are generally based on the time we spend time dealing with your case, in accordance with our hourly charge-out rates. These rates depend on the seniority and experience of the Case Handler advising you. We will always give you a cost estimate at the beginning of every matter.

For certain cases, we are happy to carry out work on a fixed-fee basis to give you the security of knowing what your legal costs will be from the outset. If you would find it helpful, we can also agree a fees limit that should not be exceeded.

Fees guidelines

Wills, codicils and letters of wishes

Wills

Simple Will (containing straightforward, simple provisions and no tax advice):

Single Simple Will – from £250 + VAT

Two Simple Wills (for a couple) – from £375 + VAT

Complex Will (incorporating a discretionary or life interest trust or multiple legacies)

Single Complex Will – from £450 + VAT

Two Complex Wills (for a couple) – from £575 + VAT

Complex Wills and tax-planning advice – POA

Codicils

Single Codicil – from £175 + VAT

Two Codicils (for a couple) – from £250 + VAT

Letters of Wishes

Single Letter of Wishes – from £100 + VAT

Two Letters of Wishes – from £125 + VAT

Trusts

Personal injury trusts for settlements under £100,000 – from £750 + VAT

Personal injury trusts for settlements over £100,000 – from £1250 + VAT

Lifetime Discretionary, Life Interest or Accumulation and Maintenance Trusts – POA

Powers of Attorney

General Power of Attorney – from £300 + VAT

Registering and Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) – from £450 + VAT and court fees

Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs)

One LPA (Property & Financial Affairs or Health & Welfare) £375 + VAT and court registration fee of £82

Two LPAs for an individual (Property & Financial Affairs and Health & Welfare) £525 + VAT and court registration fee of £82 per LPA

One LPA each for a couple (Property & Financial Affairs or Health & Welfare) – £550 + VAT and court registration fee of £82 per LPA

Two LPAs each for a couple (Property & Financial Affairs and Health & Welfare) £700 + VAT and court registration fee of £82 per LPA

Estate administration and applying for Grants of Probate / Grants of Letters of Administration

No two estates are the same, and we appreciate that there may be some elements of an estate administration where you may wish to complete the work personally. As we provide a bespoke service, we offer a choice of a fixed-fee “application only” service or the option to instruct us to undertake a full estate administration service for which we would be delighted to provide you a quote for the work required.

In order to provide you with the best guidance as to the options available to you we would prefer to talk to you about your case and the estate administration process and what you would wish for us to do on your behalf. This will provide you with a clear understanding as to the extent of the estate administration process and it will also clearly set out the extent of our involvement as well as our terms of business.

Neither we nor you can know if events will change during the course of an estate administration but, if that should happen we can discuss it at the time and agree with you how you would like us to handle any changes.

Timescales for administering an estate can vary and are dependent on other organisation outside of our control. On average it takes between 3-6 months to be in a position to file the tax return and other application papers on a taxable estate. After we receive the Grant of Probate / Letters of Administration it takes on average between 4 -10 months to conclude the estate administration depending on whether there is property or shares in the estate, and it can take longer if complications arise. The time taken for HMRC and the Probate Registry to respond after we have filed the papers with them is extremely variable –never less than 2 months and often 4 months or more.

For more information, please get in touch.

Application for Grant of Representation only – fixed fees

Non-Taxable summary applications (IHT205 / IHT217)

We can obtain the Grant of Representation for non-taxable estates but not undertake any of the estate administration. You will need to give us all the information needed to obtain a Grant of Representation (we will let you know what we need) and we will then draw up the application for you. Once we have the Grant of Representation, you can administer the estate.

Cost:

Summary account form IHT 205 and statement of truth – from £1250 + VAT and disbursements

Summary account form IHT 205 and 217 and statement of truth – from £1600 + VAT and disbursements

Full applications and Taxable estates (IHT400)

We can also obtain the Grant of Representation only for taxable estates or where a full application is needed. You will need to give us all of the information needed to obtain a Grant of Representation and we will then draw up the inheritance tax return, the Grant of Representation application for you, and agree with you how the inheritance tax (IHT) should be paid and arrange for payment. Once the IHT is paid, we will get clearance from HMRC to apply for the Grant of Representation, then apply for it. Once we have the Grant of Representation, you can administer the estate.

Costs:

IHT400 + additional schedules and statement of truth – from £2500 + VAT and disbursements

• Disbursements will include the Probate Court fee of £273 plus £1.50 per additional copy of the grant required.
• Please note that if additional affidavits or statements are needed this may have an affect on the price quoted.

Full service estate administration

We can also provide you with a full estate administration service. This involves gathering all the information needed to obtain the Grant of Representation; liaising with the various banks, financial and other institutions; dealing with payment of IHT if applicable; getting the Grant of Representation; gathering in the assets of the estate; drafting estate accounts; paying estate debts and then payment of legacies and the residuary estate; plus all other aspects of estate administration (except the actual property conveyancing fees, which are dealt with separately).

We do not do this on a fixed-fee basis because no two estates are the same. Our time is charged at an hourly rate, so complex estates always cost more to administer than simple estates. We do not calculate our charges with any reference to the value of the estate: this is because the value of the estate may not reflect how complex it is.

Once we have the details of the estate you would like administered and we have agreed with you how much work you would like us to do, and what you would like to handle yourself, we can give you a bespoke quote.

Our hourly rates vary, depending on the seniority of the person dealing with the estate and are as follows:

Partner: £240 + VAT
Solicitor: £198 + VAT
Trainee solicitor/paralegal: £120 + VAT

We usually have a mixture of people working on your file, with trainee solicitors or paralegals doing more straightforward aspects and more senior solicitors managing the complex aspects.

Other estate services we provide are:

Renunciation/power reserve notice: From £350 + VAT
Power of attorney to appoint executors: From £250 + VAT
Deed of variation: From £750 + VAT

These are not fixed fees and we would need to give you a costs estimate once we had details of the matter you would like us to help you with.