Our Court of Protection Rates
Our Court of Protection rates are set by the government based on the location of the practice. Based in Tunbridge Wells, Kent our rates are National Tier 1, significantly cheaper than London rates – yet we are readily accessible for clients in London and across the South East. Our fees are charged based on the hourly rates of the grade(s) of the team providing the work. Our hourly rates for Court of Protection work are:
Grade A: £278, B: £233, C: £190 and D: £134
Please note: additional fees charged by the Court of Protection themselves may be applicable. See the section titled The Court of Protections’ Own Fees below for details.
A guide to Grades:
Grade A: All partners
Grade B: Senior Associates
Grade C: Trainee Solicitors, Senior Client Administrators, Head of Costs
Grade D: Legal Assistants, Paralegals, Legal PAs, Legal Secretaries, Office Managers, Administrators, Legal Cashiers, Costs Assistants
The Court of Protection’s own Fees (Since May 2024)
In addition to our own fees, the following fees charged by the Court of Protection may be applicable:
Application fee – £408: payable on making an application to start court proceedings or on making an application for permission to start proceedings.
• Appeal fee – £257: payable on filing an appellants notice appealing a court decision or seeking permission to appeal a court decision.
• Hearing fee – £494: payable where the court has held a hearing to decide the application and has made a final order, declaration or decision.
• Copy of document fee – £5: payable on requesting a copy of a document filed during court proceedings.
Our Standard Rates for All Other Work
Hourly Rates
Senior Partner – £395 + VAT (£474 inc VAT)
Partner – £340 + VAT (£408 inc VAT)
Senior Associate – £250 + VAT (£300 inc VAT)
Associate – £225 + VAT (£270 inc VAT)
Trainee/ Paralegal – £190 + VAT (£228 inc VAT)
Administrative – £140 + VAT (£168 inc VAT)
Wills
Single Will – £495* + VAT (£594* inc VAT)
Mirror Wills – £750* + VAT (£900* inc VAT)
* prices presume simple wills. More complex cases may involve additional work at standard hourly rates
Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)
Single (Person A) – Property & Finance (PF) OR Health & Welfare (HW): £650** +VAT (£780** inc VAT)
Person A 2 LPAs – PF & HW: £795** + VAT (£954** inc VAT)
Persons A and B – PF or HW each: £950** + VAT (£1140** inc VAT)
Persons A & B – PF & HW each: £995** + VAT (£1194** inc VAT)
Note: The client must pay an additional £82 to the OPG for each LPA
(This price includes storage and certified copies)
** prices presume simple LPAs. More complex cases may involve additional work at standard hourly rates
Probate/Estate Management
With regard to estates where we are asked to deal with the full administration of the estate our hourly rates apply (as set out above under ‘Hourly Rates’). We also offer fixed price grant only applications:
Grant only applications – 4 basic scenarios:
- Application for a grant where there is no inheritance tax to pay and requires completion of IHT205 – £1450 plus VAT (£1740 inc VAT) plus disbursements;
- Application for a grant where there is no inheritance tax to pay and requires completion of IHT205 and IHT217 to claim the transferable nil rate band – £1,795 plus VAT (£2154 inc VAT) plus disbursements;
- Application for a grant where there is no inheritance tax to pay and requires completion of IHT400 and associated supplements – £2,350 plus VAT (£2820 inc VAT) plus disbursements;
- Application for a grant where the estate is subject to inheritance tax to include completion of IHT400 and associated supplements – £2,895 plus VAT (£3474 inc VAT) plus disbursements;
Expert Witness Work
£400 + VAT (£480 inc VAT) – hourly rate for senior partner
£300 + VAT (£360 inc VAT) – hourly rate for partner
All prices subject to change. Correct as of 01/01/2024