"Richard Miller" wrote in message
news:kpVv58i+5LJIFwEN@seasalter0.demon.co.uk...
> In message , DB.
> writes
>
>
>> I've an uneasy feeling that this solicitor might be trying to make
>> the most of all this in order to maximise his 'take'.
>
> Unfortunately the above two comments often go together, and usually
> not from posters as sensible as you.
>
>> It seems to be a straightforward Will (with you as executor and sole
>> beneficiary) and I see no reason why a solicitor should be involved
>> in the probate process. Why not take it into your own hands? If you
>> do so you'll find the Probate Registry to be the most helpful and
>> easy-to-deal with of all Government departments.
>
> If there is the potential for a claim against the estate, then the
> executor would be utterly reckless to distribute that estate before
> establishing for certain whether or not there is any such claim. In
> this case, it may well be that the executor and beneficiary are the
> same person, but even so, if he started treating the money as his own
> and then faced a claim, he could lose his home, for example, or other
> assets that he had thought were now his own.
>
> Given that there was a co-habiting partner, it is a no-brainer that
> there is the prospect of a claim, and any solicitor who dismissed the
> possibility as negligible would be grossly negligent. That is not to
> say that any claim would necessarily succeed, but as this solicitor
> has correctly said, any such claim can tie up the estate for months or
> even years, and will result in significant costs coming out of the
> estate to cover legal fees.
>
> --
> Richard Miller
One reason for the OP taking the matter of probate into his own
hands is that he can devote his attention totally to this matter,
whereas for the solicitor it is just one job of many. Justified or not,
he will charge more for a long-drawn-out process than for a
quickly-completed job.
The OP says that no claim has been received yet but that he's
'getting feedback from others' that there will be one. Surely he should
approach the girlfriend / partner informally by letter pointing out that
the Will made him executor and sole beneficiary and asking her if there
are any of his personal effects that she would like. If it's money she's
after, that must come out in her reply. He can then move on from
there - with a solicitor or not.
--
DB.
|