Advice needed about a solicitor and Will.

U

Up Rovers

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Need some advice for a friend regarding their parent's Wills. One parent has died and the other is in ill health. The parents availed of a free Will service many years ago and when he contacted the solicitor regarding another matter he was not impressed with their advice or efficiency so he brought his business elsewhere.

He now wonders if it is possible to use his own solicitor to deal with his parent's estate when his remaining parent has died? Can he just take along a copy of the Will to his own solicitor. Himself and his two brothers are due to inherit the very small estate and house and they would be in agreement with using his solicitor. As far as I am aware the 3 of them are the Executors also.
 
He and his co-executors may use the services of any solicitor they choose or none if the wish to extract the grant of probate themselves.

They will need the original will from the original solicitor who understandably will need to be paid for storage and transmission costs of the document.
 
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Following on from the original post the family have now read back over the Will and had not noticed that the solicitors put a clause in which reads as follows

I request that the firm of XXXXXXXXXX Solicitors of Address be retained as Solicitors to administer my estate.

If my friend's family do not want to use this particular solicitor are they bound by the Will to do so because his parents agreed to and signed up to that particular clause?
 
Thanks for reply Thirsty.

Just wondering why do they bother so including that clause or are they just chancing their arm in doing so.

Have never seen this in other Wills so just wondering is it an unusual inclusion?
 
Up Rovers said:
Just wondering why do they bother so including that clause or are they just chancing their arm in doing so.
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I’d say that is the reason, in many cases they do get the business.

You should always get quotes from other solicitors.

The solicitor who held the will for one of my relations quoted treble what others were quoting for probate and house sale.

In this case the solicitor who held the will wanted a legal fee of €14K when others were quoting a legal fee of €4K-€6K, a nice little earner for drawing up a free will a few years previously.
 
How much would 1 expect a solicitor too be paid for holding onto a will ? And would that always be paid from the estate ?
 
Pinoy adventure said:
How much would 1 expect a solicitor too be paid for holding onto a will ?
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I would guess most solicitors would be happy to hold a will without charge with the expectation that in many cases, when the time comes they will get the business.

The solicitor in the case I referred to did not get the business and did not charge for holding the will.
 
It wouldn't be unusual that the solicitor holding the will would see a fee for doing so especially if not getting the probate business. Indeed it is likely that he may query why he is not getting the business. Many people get ideas in their head about this solicitor or that solicitor being good or bad, often without good ground for doing so.

The cost of keeping a will can vary but my solicitor held deeds for 10 years until we sold and charged 450 euro plus V.A.T.
 
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