Our Service

We specialise in dealing with the financial affairs of a loved one who has just passed away.

When a loved one dies, the grief can be almost too much to bear. We at Probate Legal Advice can help you through this challenging time by providing professional legal advice with practical solutions.

Probate Legal Advice offer a full Estate Administration service to ease you through the steps of estate administration. Most cases are uncontested where all assets are held within the UK, making things much more accessible.

Probate Legal Advice handle the whole complicated process for you, freeing of any headache. 

We will investigate the deceased’s estate and complete the necessary Inheritance Tax (“IHT”) return. We will submit such to HM Revenue & Customs and apply to the Probate Registry for the correct type of Grant required to administer the estate. We will also collect and distribute the estate’s net assets to its beneficiaries. 

As part of our entire estate administration service, we will:

• Provide you with a dedicated, professional probate solicitor to work on your matter;
• Meet with you to discuss the estate of the deceased when and if required;
• Provide you with free legal advice and guidance regarding the administration of the deceased person’s estate;
• Outline what a person’s legal, beneficial entitlements may be in that estate;
• Identify the appointed Executors or Administrators and Beneficiaries;
• We will provide you with guidance and assistance as to the personal and financial information we will require to complete the relevant IHT account and application for Probate;
• We will accurately identify the type of Probate application that will need to be made;
• Conduct investigations into the date of death value of assets and liabilities which the deceased may have held an interest in at the time of their death to compile a complete and accurate picture of the financial institutions involved and the size, shape and value of the estate;
• Place the necessary S.27 Trustee Act Notices into both The London Gazette and a newspaper local to where the deceased lived to protect the estate against unexpected claims from unknown creditors;
• Correspond with the various financial companies and institutions to obtain the relevant information and documentation to make the applications;
• Complete the correct IHT account (together with all relevant supplemental pages) based upon the results of the investigations into the asset and liability date of death information and valuations;
• Attend to any alterations, amendments and updates required to be made to the documents;
• Prepare a finalised IHT account for the Executors or Administrators to sign before submitting such to HMRC;
• Attend to the settlement of the initial payment of IHT (where applicable) directly from the estate’s available funds (such as directly from a bank account held by the deceased) or obtain sufficient initial funds from the Executors or Administrators directly;
• Draft a legal Oath for the Executors or Administrators to consider, approve and have sworn;
• Make the application to the Probate Registry for either a Grant of Probate or a Grant of Letters of Administration to be issued;
• Obtain the correct Grant together with two Court-sealed copies;
• Register the said Grant with all of the various financial institutions where the deceased held assets, accounts and investments so that they can be closed, encashed and transferred;
• Complete Estate Tax Returns for dividends, income, interest and gains received by the estate during its period of administration;
• Have such Estate Tax Returns considered, signed and approved by the Executors or Administrators before submitting such to HMRC;
• Prepare and finalise create a set of Estate Accounts detailing the total financial transactions of the estate, and have such approved and signed by all Executors or Administrators and Residuary beneficiaries;
• Collect all assets in the estate;
• We will settle all estate costs, debts, expenses, liabilities and taxes (including paying all remaining IHT, together with any Capital Gains Tax and Income Tax liabilities) attributable to the estate;
• We will distribute the pecuniary legacies, specific gifts and the residuary estate to the beneficiaries by the terms of the deceased’s Will or intestacy provisions; and
• We will attend to all correspondence sent and received.

In probate matters, it is often challenging to outline accurate estimates at the outset as to the likely costs, as they are principally based upon the time taken to carry out the work of administering the estate. For example, legal fees will be charged to the estate or the Executor or Administrator at the hourly rate of the acting solicitor, plus VAT (at 20%) and disbursements.

Where we are instructed to attend to the entire administration of a deceased person’s estate, interim invoices are delivered for work undertaken. 

These invoices are settled out of estate funds. However, where insufficient estate funds are available to pay the legal costs, the acting Executor(s) or Administrator(s) shall become personally liable for settling our invoices.

Contact Probate Legal Advice by sending us an email.