My aunt left a will which left land worth 1.5m to a niece and the rest of money was left between eight others. the query I have is the Solicitor is charging fees of €18000 to administer the will, however much of the fees have arisen from searches and valuation of the land. The fees are been charged to the eight people who received the money and the person who received the land has not been asked to pay any of the fees. This seems unfair to me, is their anything I can do about it.?
Solicitor fees (Query)
- Thread starter Thsryan
- Start date
There is no way to allocate the fees associated with dealing with Probate to one of the beneficiaries - the cost of probate is an expense borne by the estate.
What is distributed to the beneficiaries is whatever is left in the estate after all debts and costs have been paid.
What is distributed to the beneficiaries is whatever is left in the estate after all debts and costs have been paid.
The niece who got the land will have a whopping €500,000 tax bill. She will most likely have to sell some of the land and the fees in doing that will dwarf the €2250 fees you are paying for the gift your aunt is leaving you
I think the current system is fair and good and would most likely be known by your aunt as solicitors do point this out (or at least mine did)
T McGibney
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Why are you assuming that?
T McGibney
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This sounds eminently unfair. Is the solicitor favouring the new landowner in the hope of benefiting from a future sale of the land? That would be most unethical on their part.
By the way, you might be well advised to edit your post in order to remove your name.
Is the niece a daughter of the aunt?
If not, then
Of course, the niece may be eligible for Agricultural Relief or Business Relief but we don't know if that is the case
| Value of inheritance | € 1,500,000 |
| Category A threshold (Disponer to niece) | € 335,000 |
| Taxable inheritance | € 1,165,000 |
| Tax due @ 33% | € 384,450 |
If not, then
| Value of inheritance | € 1,500,000 |
| Category B threshold (Disponer to niece) | € 32,500 |
| Taxable inheritance | € 1,467,500 |
| Tax due @ 33% | € 484,275 |
Of course, the niece may be eligible for Agricultural Relief or Business Relief but we don't know if that is the case
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There is no procedure to allow the cost of administering an estate to be borne by someone else - it is a cost borne by the estate.
I don't see how that can be considered unfair - if the aunt had wanted to do something else, she could have. All wills can be unfair in the eye of the beneficiaries but that is not what counts
I don't see how that can be considered unfair - if the aunt had wanted to do something else, she could have. All wills can be unfair in the eye of the beneficiaries but that is not what counts
I would guess the niece was left the named property and the other beneficiaries participate in the residual estate.
Assuming that is the case, it is entirely appropriate for the solicitor to deduct his (presumably agreed) fee from the estate’s residual cash assets.
Assuming that is the case, it is entirely appropriate for the solicitor to deduct his (presumably agreed) fee from the estate’s residual cash assets.
T McGibney
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1.5m valuation and being a niece - even if taking advantage of favoured niece/nephew option, the tax bill will be close to €400,000. Assuming the €1.5m valuation the OP gave is correct
T McGibney
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No suggestion that favourite niece relief is available here. It only applies in a vanishingly rare set of circumstances.
outofmymind
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Had a similar situation a while ago. The person who inherited the bulk of the estate volunteered to pay the solicitor's fees out of their portion so that it left more for the small bequests. But this was voluntary - they have inherited a specific amount, the other beneficiaries receive a share of the 'residue' ie what is left over after the specific bequests and all costs are paid. The person inheriting the bulk cannot be made to pay the fees if that was not listed in the will.
Gordon Gekko
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Is it not similar to me leaving my house to Sarenco with the residue then split equally between Brendan Burgess, Tommy McGibney, and Steven Barrett?
The residue includes my cash so it’s used to pay my estate’s legal fees, to pay for my funeral, and to pay for the monumental knees-up.
Is this not the equivalent of the three guys tapping-up Sarenco to pay a share of the bar bill?
The residue includes my cash so it’s used to pay my estate’s legal fees, to pay for my funeral, and to pay for the monumental knees-up.
Is this not the equivalent of the three guys tapping-up Sarenco to pay a share of the bar bill?
Steven Barrett
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Given your millions Gordon, there'd still be plenty left over for me, Brendan and Tommy. We might even splash out on a big casket for you.
Nothing to do with 'easiest way'. Or at least it shouldn't be. There are rules.
Probably of most relevance, S46(3) Succession Act provides:
(3) Where the estate of a deceased person is solvent, it shall, subject to rules of court and the provisions hereinafter contained as to charges on property of the deceased, and to the provisions, if any, contained in his will, be applicable towards the discharge of the funeral, testamentary and administration expenses, debts and liabilities and any legal right in the order mentioned in Part II of the First Schedule.
Without seeing the will, I cannot say ( and nor can anybody else) whether the executor (and the solicitor advising the executor) has correctly followed the rules.