Fixed-Fee Probate Dispute Pricing & Procedural Milestones
Probate disputes can often be approached through defined procedural stages. Human Law identifies the available route and prices each instructed stage separately. Under our out-of-court model, you fund strictly one milestone at a time, backed by fee certainty and a £0 dormancy shield.
* 100% of your £400 audit fee rolls forward into subsequent milestones if instructed within 14 days.
Universal Diagnostic Entry Point
Stage 01 — Factual Audit & Action Plan (£400 + VAT)
Every matter begins with a structured factual review to establish the nature of the blockage and identify the available procedural and non-court options.
- 30-minute solicitor consultation
- Document review (≤20 pages)
- 2-page written Action Plan
- Quantification of estate carrying and holding costs
- Fixed-fee recommendation for subsequent execution milestones
- 100% fee rollover guarantee: £400 credits fully if instructed on subsequent milestones within 14 days
The audit routes executor matters into one of two operational pathways:
- Zone 1: Caveat Resolution — for estates blocked before the Grant.
- Zone 2: Deadlock Resolution — for co-executor standstills, accounting demands, and financial provision claims.
For professional advisers, the Structural Clarity Report™ provides a separate B2B strategic product.
* Each milestone is priced separately. If several milestones are required, the fees are cumulative. Scope and price are confirmed before each new stage begins.
Zone 1: Caveat Removal Ladder (Fixed Fees)
A caveat costs £4 and initially prevents a Grant from issuing for six months. It may be extended, withdrawn, challenged by warning or resolved by agreement. Once a warning is served, the caveator ordinarily has 14 days to respond.
| Milestone | Procedural Service | Fixed Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Milestone 1 | Pre-Warning Assessment & Case Preparation: Review caveat basis, confirm standing, assess warning proportionality, prepare evidence, and advise on next steps. | £1,450 + VAT |
| Milestone 2 | Warning Preparation & Service Support: Prepare formal Form 4 Warning, arrange service via Leeds DPR, and manage the 14-day statutory countdown. | £1,950 + VAT |
| Milestone 3 | Appearance or Summons Analysis: Evaluate formal grounds if entered (contrary interest vs objections) and advise on procedural disposal. | £2,450 + VAT |
| Milestone 4 | Registrar Directions & Disposal Preparation: Prepare paper application pack or consent disposal for the District Probate Registrar. | £3,850 + VAT |
* If an Appearance or summons follows, further Registry procedure, agreement, directions or contested proceedings may be required, depending on the response and issues raised. Each milestone is priced separately and applied cumulatively if multiple stages are instructed.
Zone 2: Executor Deadlock Tracks (Fixed Fees)
For pre-Grant cases involving a named executor who has not proved, renounced or responded, and for other executor deadlocks requiring a separately identified procedural route.
Unblock an Inactive Executor
For named co-executors who have not proved, renounced, or responded to estate correspondence.
Assess Financial Provision Claims
For threatened Inheritance Act 1975 claims and family financial disputes prior to litigation.
Defuse Account Disagreements
For beneficiary information requests, accounting standstills, and personal representative protection.
Assess Disputed Gifts & Promises
For contested lifetime transactions and unfulfilled proprietary estoppel claims.
Additional Scope Modules (Only If Authorised)
Your fixed-fee milestones cover all standard procedural steps. Additional scope applies only in predictable, client-controlled situations:
Used only if unindexed, voluminous document bundles exceeding the standard 20-page review envelope are provided.
Up to two substantive outward letters, review of corresponding replies, and one written client update. Short administrative emails and procedural updates do not consume a module. Unused capacity expires when the milestone closes.
✓ These units are optional, predictable, and client-authorised in advance. There is zero hourly billing and no open-ended drift.
Fee Commitments and Service Boundaries
Fee Certainty
Every procedural milestone has a published, fixed fee confirmed before work begins.
100% Fee Rollover
Stage 01 credits fully into Zone 1 or Zone 2 execution within 14 days.
£0/Month Dormancy Shield
No billing during Registry delays, third-party disclosure extraction, or counterparty silence.
Personal Representative Alignment
Services are structured around administrative functions. Cost recoverability from an estate depends on authority, necessity, and proportionality.
Clear Boundaries — What We Don’t Do
To maintain fixed-fee certainty and rapid turnaround, Human Law does not provide:
- Court litigation or trial representation
- Acting as solicitor on the court record
- Accepting formal court service
- Routine grant administration or conveyancing
- Detailed forensic bank reconciliation
* If a contested trial becomes unavoidable, your file is handed cleanly to a litigation partner with the relevant documents, chronology and preliminary analysis organised for an efficient handover.
* Published figures indicate the range of individual fixed-fee stages. Where more than one stage is required, the total fee is the sum of the stages instructed. Scope and price are confirmed before each stage begins.