The Justice Committee heard oral evidence this week, for its ongoing inquiry into probate, from the Law Society, Institute of Chartered Accountants, Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners and Council of Licensed Conveyancers
Law Society president Nick Emmerson said applications took an average of seven to ten working days to process in 2016 before changes were made, and now take more than 13 weeks, with delays forcing grieving clients to incur additional costs.
Emmerson said: ‘Beyond recruiting new staff, HM Courts and Tribunal Service must train staff to possess the required knowledge and level of expertise to handle both digital and paper applications.’
