Solicitors fee for handling my Uncle's & Aunt's Estate

jemball

I am one of the beneficaries (and not an executor) in my late Aunt's will and am amazed by the Solicitors fees!

My Uncle died in early 2007 (no will) and my Aunt in Nov 2007 (with a will), and I have just received the final accounts and final cheque.

The total estate is given as app £245,000 and the accounts show professional fees of £16,000 for my Aunt's estate and £7,000 for my Uncle's estate. My Aunt's estate did included selling the house for £190,000, redeeming a £55,000 mortgage and selling other assets.

Several internet sites suggest a guide of 3% of the total estate which means that my Uncle's fee is probably OK but that my Aunt's is at least £9,000 too expensive!

I understand that handling my Uncle's estate should have been the most costly as he had no will, but it would exclude selling any assets. But even allowing a £1000 fee for selling the house I would estimate my Aunt's fee at £7000.

Has anyone had any similar experiences of unusually high Solicitor's fees and what can I do about it as I am not his client?

I believe that the Law Society requires the Solicitor to originally give the executors a 'Client Care Letter' which sets out the likely fees but have I any rights to ask for a copy of this letter?

I would greatly appreciate any help.

Thanks jemball.

2010

I can only sympathise, but this highlights the danger of NOT making a will and naming executors who are NOT solicitors or any other "professional".

chesky369

One of the mistakes was probably getting the same solicitor to work on your aunt's will and sell the house. He wouldn't have been equally practised in both areas - and conveyancing solicitors would probably have been much cheaper.

dzug1

Whether there is a will or not doesn't make a lot of difference - the actual work is about the same. Almost identical.

And 3% is very much a middle of the road figure - it can be 5%, and they can also charge an hourly rate on top.

Was the solicitor the only executor? If so he was effectively agreeing fees with himself. I don't think you as a beneficiary get a look-in. If there was a joint (lay) executor, then you can complain to him, but I'm not sure you'll get anywhere.

Who instructed the solicitor in respect of the intestate estate? Fees should have been agreed with that person.

jemball

Thanks to everybody for your interest.

My Aunt instructed the Solicitor in question to handle my Uncle's intestate estate. She also named one of her local cousins and the same Solicitor as executors of her will.

I'm sure I won't get very far with her cousin who seemed to take offence every time we suggested ways to expedite the sale of the house which started at £325,000 in March 2008 and finally sold in October 2009 for £190,000! (now that's what I call a suspicious initial asking price!)

The £16,000 and £7,000 fees which I quoted did include for hourly charges and apparently for related expenses. Incidentally I have just spotted that the Solicitor has charged £2,400 for selling the house in addition to the above fees!

Anyway I have now asked my own solicitor what he suggests, but I take the point that a beneficiary has very few rights in these situations.

missile

That seems a long time to settle an estate, what is the norm?

dzug1

Sounds like the delay was almost entirely in selling an initially over valued house.

The first estate was capable of being settled before the aunt's death. A simple estate should take no longer than 3-6 months, even working slowly.

missile

Seems a bit unfortunate for OP. Is there a mechanism whereby some of the funds, e.g. money from the deceased current account, could be made available to beneficiaries while awaiting sale of the property?

What happens to those funds being held by the executor? Does cash accrue interest in a solicitor client account?

jemball

I did receive a large proportion of my share of the estate a few months after the sale of the property. ie. The house sale completed in October 09 and I received an interim payment in December. I have just received the final (small) cheque.

Cash does accrue interest and this is listed in the final account and then paid proportionally to the beneficiaries.

dzug1 is dead right that the delay was in the house sale. The first estate was not settled until early 2008 which was presumably so long partly because my Uncle did not make a will?

They supposedly waited some 4 months after my Aunt's death to market the house because of the first estate and because of getting probate on the 2nd estate. This is clearly ridiculous because it assumes that someone would buy the house immediately had it been put on the market in Nov 07. I can but smell a rat that the eventual sale in Nov 09 was to someone who knew that they could wait that long in order to have a ridiculous offer accepted!

dzug1

jemball wrote: »

. The first estate was not settled until early 2008 which was presumably so long partly because my Uncle did not make a will?

!

It shouldn't make the slightest difference - exactly the same work has to be done whether there is a will or whether there isn't. The only difference is that in one instance the will says how the estate is distributed, in the other the laws of intestacy do. Identifying/valuing/collecting in the assets is the same work.

OK maybe an hour's work establishing who the relatives are. And I suppose some time might be wasted in confirming there wasn't a will (but that same time might be spent locating the will if there is one....).

If the solicitor is using that as an excuse it's a lame one.