Clear, straightforward legal advice for individuals and businesses.

Pricing for Private Client Matters

We act for all of our clients in a bespoke way, supplying advice and assistance tailored for each individual. This means the way we charge for our services depends on the individual matter to be attended to.

Our Fees

Where possible, we will agree a fixed fee for the work to be carried out. If this cannot be done, we will agree how and when you will be invoiced and for how much at specific intervals.

Our fees are calculated upon the likely amount of time we estimate a matter will take to complete and the appropriate level of expertise that it will require.

Typically, our hourly rates range between £250 and £350 per hour. This is dependent upon the level of experience of the person assisting you and the level of expertise required for the matter being undertaken. At the moment, this firm does not charge VAT on the legal fees it charges. In the event of this changing, these details will be updated and our clients will be advised of this change.

A Solicitor with between 15 and 20 years experience will supervise your matter.  They will be assisted by another Solicitor or fee earner with between 1 and 3 years experience.  You will be advised as to the hourly rates that both parties will charge (and how they will work together so that there is no duplication for charges) from the outset.

Disbursements

These are third party fees and charges you will need to meet directly in order to proceed. They will include the following:

  • Court Fees;
  • Fees for Official Copy Documents;
  • Searches;
  • Land Registry Fees;
  • Trustee Act Notices.

If you are going to need to settle these fees and charges, we will tell you what they will be and when you need to pay them. Payment will normally be required up front for us to continue with your matter.

VAT on Disbursements

Some disbursements attract VAT, which must be paid by the client. The current rate that VAT is charged at is 20%. Typically, Court fees and Land Registry fees do not attract VAT but other forms of searches (for example provision of official or other documents required) may attract VAT. We will make you aware of the charges and the VAT to be paid when advising you of the costs to be paid.

When We Will Charge You

We always make a charge for the advice we provide. Before giving any advice you will be informed of the potential cost in order for you to decide whether or not to proceed.

If you decide to continue, one hour of our time will cost between £250 and £350, depending upon the nature and complexity of the matter and the level of experience of the member of our team who will assist you. You may pay at the time of any meeting or upon receipt of our invoice.

If you instruct us to do further work on your behalf, we will agree the number of hours that it is likely to take and provide you with a quote for the work to be carried out. Before we begin to work for you, you will be asked to agree our fees with us.

Wills

The cost of preparation of a Will is charged for at a fixed fee or may be charged for at an hourly rate, depending upon the nature and complexity of the matter.

We will ask for a deposit of 50% of the total costs at the outset and will request payment of this before proceeding to prepare any documentation for you.

  • A simple Will (giving details of Executors, Guardians, small gifts and gift of the remainder or residue) is likely to cost between £450 and £600.
  • If you need advice with regard to creating a Trust within your Will, you can expect the charge to be between £600 and £1,000.

You will find more information about Wills and how we prepare Wills for you here.

Lasting Powers of Attorney

The cost of preparation of Lasting Powers of Attorney is:

  • £350 for completion of one LPA document (either for Property & Financial Affairs or Health and Care) and registration of the document with the Office of the Public Guardian;
  • £550 for completion of both LPA documents and registration of the documents with the Office of the Public Guardian.
  • £950 for completion of both LPA documents for registration of the documents with the Office of the Public Guardian (for couples).
  • £82 fee per LPA document (£164 for two) made payable to the Office of the Public Guardian in respect of their administration fees for registration.

Administration of an Estate

If you need assistance with an estate administration, we can provide you with simple advice, the obtaining of a Grant of Representation only, or we can deal with the entire administration for you.

  • Advice only

We charge for all advice given at our hourly rates, as set out above. The amount will depend upon the level of qualification of the solicitor providing the advice and the complexity of the matter that you need help with.

  • Obtaining a Grant of Representation Only

Where an Executor or the Representative of an estate has the time and ability to commit to dealing with an administration of an estate, all that may be required is help with obtaining the Grant of Representation (called a Grant of Probate where there is a valid Will or a Grant of Letters of Administration where the deceased died without a Will). We are happy to help you with this.

We will need all the information concerning the estate from you to proceed. We will prepare the requisite forms for HM Revenue and Customs (a short form account called an IHT205 Form or long form account called an IHT400 Form), deal with any payment of Inheritance Tax for you and prepare the required Legal Statement that the Executors must sign in order to proceed.

All of the above will be discussed with you when we provide our advice on the matter. If you decide to proceed, we estimate that the likely cost will be between £950 and £1,750 (for an estate where there is no Inheritance Tax to pay) and £2,000 and £3,500 (for an estate where there is Inheritance Tax to pay), although this depends upon the complexity of the estate and the information you provide us with at the time.

You will also need to pay disbursements (as set out above), in particular the Court application fee for the Grant (currently £300).

  • Full Estate Administration

Alternatively, you can instruct us to deal with all matters concerning the estate in their entirety. This normally includes writing to all concerned parties, obtaining all financial information regarding the deceased and the estate, completion of the appropriate Inheritance Tax account and payment of any Inheritance Tax, preparation of the required Statement of Truth, application for the Grant of Representation, collection in of all assets and the sale or transfer of the same, contacting all beneficiaries and making required distributions from the estate.

The time that this takes is far greater than if we are merely obtaining the Grant of Representation for you. Therefore the likely estimate for this amount of work will be between £4,000 and £10,000. Again, this depends on the number of the assets within the estate, the number of people and organisations to be contacted and the complexity of the work involved.

Please note that in the event of there being missing beneficiaries, difficulties establishing the nature of the assets, technical issues that may arise (due to issues concerning the validity of the Will or Inheritance Tax questions), the fees charged may be more or have to be revised.

  • Disputes

We do not deal with contentious or potentially litigious matters. These may arise if someone seeks to challenge a Will or bring a claim against the estate. If this happens, the matter may then fall outside of our expertise and we will need to refer you to another solicitor who does specialise in this area.

  • Costs not included in the above

If the estate has a property to sell, we can act for you in some circumstances. You will be provided with a separate quote for any probate sale of this nature.

We do not deal directly with the Income Tax affairs of the deceased directly and will seek to refer these to an Accountant to prepare any Income Tax Returns required. If the deceased had their own Accountant, we will refer this to them. The estate will be charged separately for this service.

Estimated Charges for Administration of an Estate

The below are examples of the costs that you are likely to pay if we are instructed to assist you.

The value of an estate will depend upon the total value of all assets, less any liabilities due at the date of death and the various reliefs and exemption that are available to it.  The most common reliefs and exemptions are:

  • Spouse exemption
  • Charity exemption
  • Nil Rate Band (NRB)
  • Transferable Nil Rate Band (TNRB)
  • Residence Nil Rate Band (RNRB)
  • Transferable Residence Nil Rate Band (TRNRB)
  • Business Property Relief (BPR)
  • Agricultural Property Relief (APR)
Value of Estate Type of Application Costs (exclusive of VAT)
Non-taxable –

 

Value is within the NRB, spouse exempt or combined NRB and TNRB

  IHT205 Form and Legal Statement From £950 to £1,500
Non-taxable –

 

Value is within the NRB and RNRB or combined NRB, TRNB, RNRB and TRNRB

  IHT400 Form with supporting

 

schedules and Legal Statement

 From £1,500 to £2,000
Taxable Estate IHT 400 with supporting schedules and Legal Statement.  Arrangements to pay Inheritance Tax due. From £2,000 to £3,500
Taxable Estate, with complex assets (including foreign assets), value in excess of £1.5 million IHT 400 with supporting schedules and Legal Statement.  Arrangements to pay Inheritance Tax due. From £3,000 – £5,000
Taxable Estate, with complex assets, with value in excess of £2 million, including elements of Estate Administration IHT 400 with supporting schedules and Legal Statement.  Arrangements to pay Inheritance Tax due. From £5,000 – £10,000

For more information about our charges please contact us. You will find our details here or you can complete our Contact Us form: