Contested Wills
Not every Estate proceeds happily from commencement to completion, with all the Beneficiaries entirely satisfied with the result.
Sometimes someone has been excluded from a Will and either disputes the validity of such Will or submits a claim against the Estate. Sometimes Executors take every opportunity to extend the period of time of their Executorship or take wrong decisions about how to manage the Estate.
Often this is because either they or their Solicitors are not experienced with particular complicated issues that commonly arise.
Rainer Hughes are well experienced in resolving disputes with Estates and have a considerable knowledge of the ACTPAS procedure for identifying issues and resolving them without having to incur the enormous expense of court proceedings.
However, if such a resolution is unachievable then the Rainer Hughes Private Client Team are renowned for adopting a robust approach on behalf of the clients and have a consistent record of success.
Key Experience
Successfully Contested a will on behalf of an individual whose father’s estate involved complex personal and commercial interests
Obtained an emergency power of attorney for an individual whose life was at risk.
This section of the website outlines pricing and charges for our Wills and Probate Department’s services.
Rainer Hughes are supporting the Solicitors Regulatory Authority’s (SRA) drive to improve transparency in legal services by helping people to understand the services available and the costs involved.
Should you have any queries in relation to pricing, please do not hesitate to contact us for further information on 01277 226644 or by email : info@rainerhughes.com
We will always give you an individual quote at the start of your transaction, which will take into consideration your personal circumstances and any factors which may affect the transaction.
This section of our website aims to help you understand the likely costs of using a Solicitor for your Will and Probate Matter.
Please see below a complete list of all our Wills and Probate Department’s charges.
Our firm aims to provide you with an indication of the costs involved in providing legal services to you. Should you have any queries in relation to pricing, please do not hesitate to contact us for further information.
PLEASE NOTE: We charge £6.00 per person for an electronic ID check.
Will(s)
We offer a fixed fee service for all basic Wills:
| Fee (excluding VAT) | TOTAL (including VAT @20%) |
Single Basic Will | £ 300.00 | £ 360.00 |
Mirror Wills | £ 500.00 | £ 600.00 |
As part of our fixed fee, we will:
- Initial consultation
- Preparation of your draft Will
- Any revisions required
- Meeting to execute your Will (including suppling a suitable witness)
- Copies of your executed Will
- Storage of your original Will
Our specialist Will solicitors are available to see clients at short notice. We offer free home visits to clients who are unable to personally attend our offices due to ill health within a 1‐mile radius of the Shenfield office.
If your circumstances are more complicated or you require a home visit outside of the 1‐mile radius,
we will discuss the matter with you and confirm costs with an actual quotation.
We make no separate charges for the storing or retrieval of original documentation, but an administration charge currently of £35.00 plus VAT of £7.00 a total of £42.00 will be charged for dispatching original documentation directly to yourselves or to other solicitors, once we have had the appropriate document to release the original documentation.
Deed of Variation
If a beneficiary wishes to redirect their entitlement by way of a Deed of Variation, our fees will be :
| Fee ( excluding VAT ) | TOTAL ( including VAT @20% ) |
Deed of Variation | £ 800.00 | £ 960.00 |
As part of our fixed fee we will :
- Initial consultation
- Preparation of the draft Deed of Variation
- All revisions
- Meeting to execute the Deed of Variation (including suppling a suitable witness) or posting the Deed of Variation to all relevant parties for signature
- Copy(s) of the executed Deed of Variation
- Storage of the original Deed of Variation
We make no separate charges for the storing or retrieval of original documentation, but an administration charge currently of £35.00 plus VAT of £7.00, will be charged for dispatching original documentation directly to yourselves or to other solicitors, once we have had the appropriate document to release the original documentation.
Deed of Gift
If you wish to provide a deed of gift, our fee will be :
| Fee ( excluding VAT ) | TOTAL ( including VAT @20% ) |
Deed of Gift | £ 400.00 | £ 480.00 |
As part of our fixed fee we will:
- Initial consultation
- Preparation of your draft Deed
- Any revisions required
- Meeting to execute your Deed (including suppling a suitable witness) or posting the Deed to all relevant parties for signature
- Copies of your executed Deed
- Storage of your original Deed
If your circumstances are more complicated, we will discuss the matter with you and confirm costs with an actual quote.
We make no separate charges for the storing or retrieval of original documentation but an administration charge currently of £35.00 plus VAT of £7.00 will be charged for dispatching original documentation directly to yourselves or to other solicitors, once we have had the appropriate document to release the original documentation.
Lasting Power of Attorney
Our firm can provide both Property & Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney and Health and Welfare Power of Attorney.
We charge the following fixed fees for Power of Attorney
| Fee ( excluding VAT ) | TOTAL ( including VAT @20% ) |
Single Power of Attorney | £ 600.00 | £ 720.00 |
Two Power of Attorneys | £ 800.00 | £ 960.00 |
Disbursements
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
The following is a summary of likely disbursements that you will incur when dealing with a lasting power of attorney.
| Government Fees |
Single Power of Attorney | £ 82.00 |
Two Power of Attorneys | £ 164.00 |
Certified Copy | £35.00 |
The above disbursements do not incur VAT. As part of our fixed fee, we will:
- Initial consultation
- Preparation of your draft Lasting Power of Attorney(s)
- Any revisions required
- Provide certification and witnesses for the Donor
- Posting the Lasting Power of Attorney(s) to the relevant Attorney(s) for signature
- Submitting the Lasting Power of Attorney(s) to the Office of the Public Guardian for registration
- Notifying persons to be told
- Sending the registered Lasting Power of Attorney to the Donor for safe keeping
Applying for the Grant of Probate and managing the distribution of assets.
No two probate cases are the same. They are as individual as the person whose estate is being administered.
Grant Only Probate Fees
| Fee (excluding VAT ) | TOTAL (including VAT @20% ) |
A simple estate which uses the IHT205 form based on the value of the estate and assets comprised in the estate (ideal for a surviving spouse) | £ 1,200.00 | £ 1,440.00 |
An estate which uses the IHT205 and IHT217 (Transferable Nil Rate Band Claim from a former spouse or civil partner) | £1,600.00 | £ 1,920.00 |
A full Inheritance Tax return is required using form IHT 400 and accompanying schedules | £2,400.00 | £2,880.00 |
A full Inheritance Tax return is required using form IHT 400 and accompanying schedules and Inheritance Tax is payable | £3,200.00 | £3,840.00 |
As part of our fixed fee we will:
- Initial consultation – Clients will need to provide us with a full list of the assets and liabilities in the estate. We will require date of death valuations for all assets and a list of all gifts made in excess of £3,000 made within the last seven years
- Prepare draft IHT documentation
- Prepare Executors Legal Statement (or Oath for Letters of Administration – if there is no Will)
- Process the application to HMRC and Probate Registry
- Provide the Executor(s) or Administrator with the sealed Grant of Probate We will advise on a more accurate quote once we are aware of your circumstances.
Full Estate Administration
We can handle the full process for you. This service will include the Grant only service as well as the following, which will be charged as time only (Please note the following is NOT included in our Grant only service):
- Obtaining the date of death valuations
- Transferring or selling any land or property
- Dealing with Income or Capital Gains Tax matters which occurred before death or during the period of the estate administration
- Dealing with assets of a pre‐deceased spouse
- Correspondence with beneficiaries of the estate
- Locating missing beneficiaries
- Foreign assets
- Complete Statutory Notice (if required)
- Realise all assets and liabilities within the estate
- Obtain suitable ID for all beneficiaries
- Make interim distributions (if applicable)
- Finalising income tax affairs of the deceased for the estate administration period and issuing tax certificates to beneficiaries (if required)
- Submit IHT corrective accounts and obtain an IHT clearance certificate
- Finalisation and distribution of the estate
- Contentious Probate Matters such as disputes between beneficiaries on the division of assets or claims being made against the estate
Our firm charges for this service based on an hourly rate or Value Element:
Partner: | £ 400.00 per hour |
Associate Solicitor: | £ 350.00 per hour |
Paralegal: | £ 165.00 per hour |
All of the above fees are exclusive of VAT.
The rates are subject to review at the end of each calendar year.
As a guide, our fee for a full estate administration ranges from 6 hours of Solicitors time, i.e. £2,100 plus VAT for a straightforward estate not consisting of complex assets
Value Element
The Law Society permits solicitors to charge a value element on probate matters. The value element is payable in addition to our fees, VAT and disbursements.
The amount of the value element is set by the Law Society and is: 0.5% of the value of land and fixed property
1.0% of the value of cash, savings, shares, investments and moveable assets
We will always charge the value element but this may be discounted by up to 100%. For instance, surviving spouses inheriting the whole estate of the first spouse to die will usually receive a 100% deduction. In making a decision, we will consider the circumstances of each case and make an assessment of risk. For examples of relevant factors taken into consideration, please see below.
However, the value element is a reflection of the skill of the lawyer in identifying assets and making sure that the wishes of the deceased are processed with discernment, efficiency and with the interests of the beneficiary’s paramount.
Relevant Factors
Every estate is different and so it is important we consider each individual matter carefully before confirming an estimate. We have set out below some of the factors that we take into consideration once we have further information whereupon we can provide a reliable estimate and confirm whether or not a value element will be charged.
Whether there a valid Will
Who are the Personal Representatives? Can we easily identify them? The value of the estate
Is the estate subject to Inheritance Tax?
Are there any available reliefs for Inheritance Tax (including the Transferrable Nil Rate Band and the Residence Nil Rate Band)?
Is there agricultural property? Are there business assets?
The number of bank accounts The number of other investments
The number of beneficiaries (and their ages) Whether there are disputes between beneficiaries
The person in charge of your matter and their hourly charge-out rate
Disbursements
Disbursements are costs related to Probate matters that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
Disbursements that are additional to Probate services stated are:
Fee | Fee | Fee with VAT |
Probate application Fee | £273.00 | No VAT |
Further copies | £0.50 | No VAT |
Swearing of the Oath per Executor | £5.00 £2.00 (per Will and Codicil) | No VAT |
Land Registry Search | £6.00 | No VAT |
Statutory Notice – Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors | £200 (approximately) | £240.00 (approximately) |
If there is no Will or the estate consists of shareholdings (stocks and bonds) there will be additional costs and this will range depending on the estate. A more accurate quote can be provided once we have received further information.
Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.
On average estates are dealt within a 6 – 15 month period. Where Inheritance Tax is payable to HMRC, estates cannot be concluded until a HMRC Clearance Certificate is received. A HMRC Clearance
Certificate cannot be applied for until the first twelve months after the date of death.
These are expenses incurred by us in undertaking the work we do for you and are charged in addition to our fees.
Advice
General Advice is charged at the below rates:
Partner: | £ 400.00 per hour |
Associate Solicitor: | £ 350.00 per hour |
Paralegal: | £ 165.00 per hour |
All of the above fees are exclusive of VAT.
The rates are subject to review at the end of each calendar year.
Our Probate Team
Our firm has experience of delivering high quality work relating to Wills and Estate Administration. We currently have the following individuals in our Probate team.
Michael Casson – Associate Solicitor – 42 years’ experience of conducting probate and estate work
Amanda Wright – Paralegal – 5 years’ experience
