The MoJ launched a consultation, ‘Aligning the fees for grants of probate to costs recovery’, last week on whether to use a single fee set at the cost of delivery rather than separate fees for legal professionals and laypersons. The consultation closes on 23 September.
However, Law Society president I Stephanie Boyce questioned the rise in fees ‘particularly when there are continued and significant delays to the probate service’.
In February, HM Courts & Tribunal Service (HMCTS) reported it received 17,101 digital probate applications and 7,008 paper applications. That same month, 23,687 grants of probate were issued.
Boyce said: ‘With so many applications now online and the expansion of Court and Tribunal Service Centres to centralise administration, it is unclear why probate service overheads have increased to justify such a significant fee hike.
‘In 2020, people had to wait 12 to 14 weeks on average to receive their grant. This is unacceptable.’
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