Lost faith in solicitors executing my father's estate. Grateful for advice.

[Kolo]

My father died just over a year ago. He left a will and named his lifelong friend and a solicitors company as executor. His friend, sadly, was too poorly to act as executor and has signed something to that effect, and so the solicitors are executing the will. There are 4 beneficiaries: myself, my brother and my 2 children (my fathers only grandchildren). My father was a widow when he died.

I'm losing faith in their competency and wondered if a) I'm right to lose faith and b) if so, what can I do?

I struggle to get hold of the solicitor dealing with the estate. He is never available when I call, gets his secretary to return my calls. Doesn't answer my emails. Last time I was able to speak to him was December when he had to call me about a problem.

He has given me incorrect information which has essentially led to me agreeing to giving away half of my children's inheritance by mistake.

The estate is not huge or complex; it's the family home and a current and savings account. I'd say it's all less than £200k. And yet the solicitor seems to have gotten nowhere in the year since my dad died. I sent an email asking for reasons why it's taking so long last week and his secretary phoned me on Thursday to say they'd applied for probate that day. Why has it taken 12 months to apply for probate? Is that normal? He's never given me any explanation as to why it has taken so long, or what the hold up is.

I'd really appreciate some advice on this. I am still grieving and emotions are running high. I don't know if my anger with the solicitor is justified.

I am sorry for your loss.
It does seem to me that they have acted slowly, I would suggest a timescale of 3-4 months to get the Grant of Probate but obviously I don't know all the facts. The issue is, the solicitors are the Executors and although they have a fiduciary duty to you as the beneficiary you are not their client.
I don't know how you managed to sign away your children's inheritance though - what happened? Were you advised to get your own legal advice? Can the decision be reversed?
If you are unhappy with the solicitor perhaps a letter/ email to the senior partner would help?

No that's not normal. How have they been dealing with things like insuring your fathers house if they haven't got probate? I would go and see another solicitor and ask the to write to request details of the timeline and their actions to date.

Complain to the law society about maladministration.

I don't think the service you've received has been adequate.

Here is a link to the law society's complaints procedure (assuming England and Wales), which I would urge you to follow - www.lawsociety.org.uk/for-the-public/using-a-solicitor/complain-about-a-solicitor/

You can apply to the courts to have an executor removed but it would be a lengthy and expensive process. I wouldn't recommend it based on the circumstances you've outlined here.

I think it would be helpful, if you felt able to, to give more details about the incorrect information that caused you to give away half of your children's inheritance.

It's quite a long story about the misinformation and I think would be very identifying. I'll try to give a brief outline, though.

My dad had a SIPP pension (think that's the correct term?). Years ago he bought a building for his office, using his pension, and operated his business from there for a couple of decades. In his will he left this property to any grandchildren alive at the time of his death (which is my children). The will was written at the same company who are now handling it, but with a different solicitor. I was there when it was signed, as he also wanted me to have power of attorney (which I never had to use). The family friend was also there at that meeting (the one who was named as executor but couldn't take up this role).

The solicitor has changed the locks on this office, had it valued as part of the estate last summer.

The pension company contacted the solicitor at the end of last year (so they'd been handling the estate for 9 months by this point), who in turn contacted me. My dad had named me as the sole beneficiary of his pension. But as it wasn't part of the estate, and nominations are not legally binding, the pension company wanted to ask the solicitor for his opinion of who should benefit. He was of a mind to nominate me and my brother in equal shares. I had no issue with this, I didn't think it would be worth much, we're adult children, not dependents, and I have absolutely no interest in taking more inheritance than my brother. I had recalled that the pension company had something to do with the purchase of the office, so I checked with the solicitor whether this included the office. He assured me over the phone that the office was completely separate and completely safe, it was definitely part of the estate and earmarked for my children. So I agreed to the solicitor recommending me and my brother being joint beneficiaries of the pension.

Since then, the pension company wrote to me as a beneficiary and it turns out they own the office, it is part of the pension (and the only part - there's no other significant asset). The fact that a non- nominated beneficiary (my brother) can only take a lump sum payment, means a sale will be forced.", and my brother will receive half (as will I).

Sorry, that wasn't brief at all - quite a complex 'mistake'. I am not sure whose fault it is that my dad put the office as part of his will, when it wasn't 'his'. Is that something the solicitor should have checked at the time of writing the will? I'm not sure whether the solicitor should have discovered that the office didn't belong to the estate in the 9 months since my dads death. If the solicitor hadn't assured me that the office was part of the estate, I wouldn't have agreed to give up half the pension rights. I would have been able to claim the office and given it to my children. Now it's going to have a sale forced and half the value given to my brother.

Added to that, I know the solicitor has been spending money from the estate on the office which doesn't belong to the estate! Insurance, locksmiths, getting valuations. The remaining cash from the estate should also be going to the grandchildren, not the children (me and my brother).

You need to complain to the Legal Ombudsman. I did that when a solicitor failed to send me some documents I needed and I had asked repeatedly for. They then contacted a senior partner who contacted me and I got the documents. Complain immediately.

The engagement latter you should have received when the solicitor took in the matter will outline the internal complaints procedure you will need to have exhausted before you go to the Law Society. If for whatever reason you didn’t get an engagement letter you should ask the senior or managing partner of the firm for a copy

Thanks for the replies.

I didn't get a letter of engagement. I imagined that, as my dad was their client, not me, I had no grounds to make any complaint. I will ask for one on Monday, though, thank you. At the very least I'd like to see a record of what they've been doing for a year.

Just contact Legal Ombudsman - NO preliminaries required.

Just contact Legal Ombudsman - NO preliminaries required.

Unfortunately that's not correct. As their website makes clear, the Legal Ombudsman requires you to have complained to the legal services provider and given them eight weeks to respond. They will require copies of your complaint and any response you received.

www.legalombudsman.org.uk/?portfolio=complaint-form-legal

Cohne I would have had a record of complaining that I did not receive the documents I asked for - without getting them - for 2 months or longer - so would have used these as proof of complaint to solicitor.
OP don't you have anything in your paperwork/emails that constitutes complaints?

Do you know how much the solicitor is charging you ? Is it going to come out of the estate and will it be itemised ?
When my mother died , I was named as executor . I didn't rush taking it to private as she passed in November and I didn't want to put her house in the market until the spring . She also had pensions, savings, investments etc.
I have no legal experience , but decided to deal with probate myself. It was fairly easy to work through and it definitely only took 8-12 weeks for it to go through even though her will was lodged at her solicitors I'm grateful she didn't appoint then as executor.

I don't have much of a record of emails. It's mainly me asking questions and giving them info, with no replies. The main contact I've had from them is his secretary calling me.

I wasn't appointed and executor @namethecat. When my mum died intestate, my dad applied for probate and dealt with everything (which should have been relatively straightforward- he was married to her and the only beneficiary as a result). He said that it was such a difficult process that he didn't want us (his kids) to deal with it. I have no idea what the solicitors fees are. I've no idea where the money is coming from - whether he's paid upfront or it's coming out of the estate, although I'm guessing the latter. Up till recently I've never thought I'd have to get involved.

He said that it was such a difficult process that he didn't want us (his kids) to deal with it.

This is a pity. As has been posted elsewhere in MN, once a solicitors has been nominated as executor, it is very difficult to get rid of them. Much better to nominate the D.C., and FB leave it open to them to use solicitors they are happy working with.

Agreed, @FinallyHere. There are/were some other family dynamics that make me understand why he didn't want to make his children executors, and I think he appointed his old family friend as an executor to try and ensure there was someone looking after our interests. A real catalogue of crappy events seems to have led to my dads wishes not being met when it came down to it. It has made me realise just how tight planning has to be.

@kolo. Indeed. 💐