My solicitor can get no reply from another solicitor!! 10 February at 5:28PM in Marriage, relationships & families 19 replies 941 views

royP_2

tooldle said:

Who is to inherit the from Bil’s partner? Are you saying Bil cannot afford to make the repair, part of which could then be recharged to the estate of the deceased partner? 

Have no ides who inherits from BIL's partner, BIL can pay the cost of the repair but as I understand things the solicitor for the partner had the house insured last October time and therefore it would seem that a claim should be made via the insurance, and that is the problem, I am not able, nor my solicitor can get any response from partners solicitor.

tightauldgit

You said your solicitor was going to try again on Monday, did they have any success? 

Have you made a formal complaint to the solicitor and explained the consequences of their inaction? I think you need to do that. Solicitors have a duty of care and they can't simply ignore people if that is going to lead to financial loss. Bu you might have to go to the ombudsman if you are getting no luck.

Is there some underlying dispute here? 

On the other had BIL has to act to protect his property so if not etting repairs done is making things worse it mght be wise to get them done and then bill the estate for 50%

tooldle

Have you checked current status of the property on Land Registry? Has the ownership been changed to reflect the letter from March. If yes, arrange the repair and send the invoice to partners solicitor with a request for Bil to be reimbursed 50%. 
You can also check if probate has been granted. 
I understand why you wish to claim on insurance, but if you can't get an answer is it worth the continued stress to yourself, for the sake of saving Bil a few hundred pounds?
Partner's solicitor may of course not be responding, as they are not contracted to do anything other than obtain probate and discharge the will.

tightauldgit

tooldle said:

Partner's solicitor may of course not be responding, as they are not contracted to do anything other than obtain probate and discharge the will.

But part of being an executor is having a duty of care to carry out their duties in a way which is in the best interests of the beneficiaries which includes avoiding losses to the estate. 

If the house forms part of the estate, executor is aware its damaged and further damage is being caused by their inaction then they aren't acting in the best interests of the beneficiaries.

royP_2

tightauldgit said:

You said your solicitor was going to try again on Monday, did they have any success? 

No, nothing to date, I will give it to Friday and perhaps make a formal complaint, as far as I am aware there is no  underlying dispute, to me it seems to be a simple matter of selling the house and 50% going to each party, my BIL has no interest regarding probate and her Will just wants the matter sorted to help pay for his care home fees.

tightauldgit

royP_2 said:

tightauldgit said:

You said your solicitor was going to try again on Monday, did they have any success? 

No, nothing to date, I will give it to Friday and perhaps make a formal complaint, as far as I am aware there is no  underlying dispute, to me it seems to be a simple matter of selling the house and 50% going to each party, my BIL has no interest regarding probate and her Will just wants the matter sorted to help pay for his care home fees.

Well it's not a simple matter of selling anything until probate completes I wouldn't think. Have you or you BIL had sight of the will? Does it say to sell their share of the property or is someone inheriting it? Also presumably nothing can be sold without your BIL being involved. If they haven't been instructed to sell the house then they won't be doing so. 

There could be complications in probate that I guess could be holding things up but even so they should still be protecting the value of the estate by taking proper care of the assets. 

Why wait till Friday to make a formal complaint? Find the solicitor's website, find their complaints process and do so immediately. Inform them that their inaction is resulting in damage to the property and that if they don't respond you will escalate the issue to the Ombudsman. If nothing else it might prompt a response from them. 

tooldle

tightauldgit said:

tooldle said:

Partner's solicitor may of course not be responding, as they are not contracted to do anything other than obtain probate and discharge the will.

But part of being an executor is having a duty of care to carry out their duties in a way which is in the best interests of the beneficiaries which includes avoiding losses to the estate. 

If the house forms part of the estate, executor is aware its damaged and further damage is being caused by their inaction then they aren't acting in the best interests of the beneficiaries.

We don’t know if the damage is continuing, nor do we know if the solicitor is an executor or employed to assist an executor. We do know there is one owner still alive and the proportions of ownership are in dispute. 

royP_2

I visited the property today and there does not seem to be any further damage, property is drying out and the central heating is on, so that's a relief.
My solicitor did find out that the solicitor acting for my BIL partner is an executor with and who they described as a “lay executor” which is a near neighbour whom I met today at the property, and he seems to be as much in the dark as I am regarding any insurance cover, he is fed up with the whole business.

newlywed

royP_2 said:

My solicitor is going to try again on Monday if we do not get any reply will perhaps try a letter based upon what you suggest, only problem being that the partners solicitors receptionist told me that the solicitor will not speak to me directly and that I must go through my own solicitor, which to date has got me nowhere.

That is correct. It’s solicitor/law society rules. If you have a solicitor acting for you then they cannot deal with you direct and it must be via your solicitor.