Wills and Probate

Simple Will

If you are under the age of 50 and in good health and if you have a small estate, a simple will be the correct choice for you.

Living Will

A Living Will is for recording your wishes regarding any future medical care or treatments during your lifetime. A simple will or any other will should be made for inheritance matters.

Mirroring Wills

In England and Wales, Married and unmarried couples use Mirror Wills (separate but identical legal documents) to write similar wishes in their respective wills.

Trust Wills

A Trust is a legal structure which can be included as part of your Will and can offer increased asset protection for your loved ones. These types of Wills are called Trust Wills. We would always recommend that you consider the benefits of setting up a Trust as part of your Will. They are most commonly seen in the following circumstances:

If you wish to protect your estate against possible care fees in the future, if you have a spouse or partner but children from a previous relationship or if you wish to leave some of your estate to a vulnerable or disabled person etc., then trust wills would be the correct choice for you. This is best for offering increased inheritance protection.

Complex Will

Complex Will is will which is tailored to the needs of persons where several complexities may arise, for example, of divorced persons with children from a previous marriage. Is designed for those who have been divorced and have children from a previous marriage which when it comes to making the Will it may present complexities.

Codicils

A codicil is a document similar to will which allows to amend an existing will and that needs to be signed and witnessed in the same way as a will.

You should use codicils to make small changes like when someone named in your will dies, you have children or grandchildren, you might want to change who gets what, you get married, you get divorced etc.

You shouldn’t alter the original will document. If you want to make big changes, it is better to write anew will which will revoke the previous will.

A new will

Writing new will is as same as writing will for the first time, however your new needs to clearly say that it revokes any older wills or codicils.

Specialist Will

Wills involve trusts and overseas property and also include tax planning advice.

Life interest trust Wills

This is a Trust which allows the assets within the Trust to be either invested or retained for the benefit of the surviving spouse.

Probate

This is a Trust which allows the assets within the Trust to be either invested or retained for the benefit of the surviving spouse.

VAT Notice

Please note that VAT at 20% will need to be added to our charges and to some of the payments that we need to make on your behalf.

Our Will & Codicil services do not include:

• Storage of the Will/Codicil

Type of work carried out involves:

• Considering information provided by the client such as details of property, accounts, shares, chattels etc.
• Drafting of the Will/Codicil
• Checking over the draft alongside the client to explain aspects and to see if any changes need to be made or if any additional information needs to be added
• Gathering the necessary evidence needed for the Probate application
• Applying for a grant of representation
• Advising on inheritance tax
• Advising on debts and unpaid bills
• Collecting in the estate assets
• Dealing with HMRC negotiations
• Preparation of full estate accounts and tax returns
• Distributing the deceased’s estate as efficiently as possible

Timescale for Probate:

Obtaining a Grant of Probate:

The time it takes to obtain a Grant of Probate, which gives the executor the legal authority to manage the deceased person's assets, can vary based on factors like estate complexity, presence of a will, and any potential complications. On average, it usually takes between 3 to 6 months. However, if the application is more complex or has unique circumstances, it could take longer.

Collecting Assets after Grant of Probate:

After receiving the Grant of Probate, the executor starts collecting the deceased person's assets, which can include bank accounts, investments, personal belongings, and potentially property. This process typically takes around 3 to 4 months. If a property is part of the estate, the time could be longer due to market conditions and legal procedures required for property transactions.

Property Sale and Market Dependencies:

If the estate includes a property that needs to be sold, the timeline can be further extended. Selling property involves legal processes, potential market fluctuations, finding buyers, and dealing with property transactions, which are subject to a range of external factors. This can lead to additional time beyond the initial estimated 3 to 4 months.

Overall Estate Settlement Time:

Taking all these stages into consideration, the average time to fully settle an estate, including obtaining the Grant of Probate, collecting assets, and potentially selling a property, is approximately 10 to 12 months. It's important to note that each case is unique, and there can be variations in the timeframes due to individual circumstances, legal complexities, or unexpected challenges.

Fees:

Our legal fees for administering an estate are calculated as approximately 2.50% of the value of the gross assets. This means that if the estate's gross assets are worth a certain amount, the legal fees would amount to 2.50% of that value. The legal fees are subject to VAT at a rate of 20%. There is a minimum fee of £2,000 plus VAT at 20%. This means that even if the calculated 2.50% fee falls below £2,000, the minimum fee of £2,000 will apply. It's important to note that these fee structures are usually designed for straightforward estates. More complex estates, with intricate financial arrangements or legal issues, could result in different fee arrangements.

Please refer to our fixed fee price list for Wills & Probate for further information. The cost depends on what you need and how complex it is.