Can I have my own solicitor for probate? 7 September 2022 at 3:32PM in Deaths, funerals & probate 9 replies 516 views

Sapphire722

I'm joint executor with my sister for my Mother's Will. My sister has taken over and says we're doing the probate without a solicitor. I'm not happy that she knows what she's doing. She's already proven to be dishonest - can I get my own solicitor to represent me, just to make sure it all goes through as it should. The Will is held by another solicitor. The solicitor holding the will says we have to work together with him. 

elsien

How can she be doing probate without a solicitor if there’s a solicitor involved telling you you have to work with them? Are they also appointed as an executor? Otherwise what reason are they giving for not just handing the will over and letting you get on with it which is what they should be doing if they haven’t been appointed by anyone.
 If you get your own solicitor you need to discuss whether you are paying for it yourself or whether the cost will be coming from the estate.

Sapphire722

She has told us she will not use a solicitor, but he is holding the will and will not even let me have a copy.  I only have a photocopy that my sister reluctantly handed over.  He says he has to be fair to both of us and not favour one or the other.  He just keeps repeating himself saying we have to work together. My sister says there is no money, just half a house each, but a few days ago, I found the latest statement from Mum's ISA, for £53,000.  I now can't trust her, obviously, but can I have another solicitor working just for me on the same case?  It's getting confusing!

Sapphire722

The solicitor is not en executor.

shiraz99

If it's a straightforward will then applying for probate yourselves makes a lot better sense than spending thousands from the estate on paying a solicitor to do it for you. It really isn't that difficult. Unless you decide to have your powers reserved your sister will be able to do very little without your knowledge and approval as joint executor anyway.

p00hsticks

Although the solicitor should simply be handing over the will to the named executors, I can quite understand their reluctance if you are both contacting him independently of each other with diffenret suggestions and obviously at loggerheads over the whole thing....

Alphatauri

Yes you can instruct your own solicitor. 

However, I would start by arranging a meeting with the solicitor holding the will and your sister. They are right saying you have to work together if you are joint executors and by both meeting with the solicitor they will explain the legal requirements as executors.

thegreenone

Is the bank statement up to date?  If you have a copy of the Death Certificate (and Will), I would go to the nearest branch and check the money is still there.  If it's not, it could be the reason why your sister doesn't want to involve a solicitor.

It sounds as though the solicitor has measure of your sister and wants everything done as it should be. It was about £1200 for my late Mum's estate.  I handed all the paperwork over and they did all.  Yes, I probably could've done it myself but wasn't confident enough.  In your shoes, I would definitely have an impartial person do the Probate and HMRC.

Marcon

Sapphire722 said:

She has told us she will not use a solicitor, but he is holding the will and will not even let me have a copy.  I only have a photocopy that my sister reluctantly handed over.  He says he has to be fair to both of us and not favour one or the other.  He just keeps repeating himself saying we have to work together. My sister says there is no money, just half a house each, but a few days ago, I found the latest statement from Mum's ISA, for £53,000.  I now can't trust her, obviously, but can I have another solicitor working just for me on the same case?  It's getting confusing!

Are you sure your sister knew about the ISA and had also seen the statement? If not, possibly your reaction is a bit OTT - emotions are always running high after a bereavement, so it's easy to jump to conclusions when it's possible they may not be accurate.

GDB2222

Of course, you can have your own solicitor, to advise you. You can't expect the estate to pay for that, though.

A solicitor won't magically know about your mother's assets. He will rely on you to provide him with all the information. So, I struggle to see what he can do that really helps the situation.