Probate- How long should it take?

Our man in Havana

How long should probate on a small estate take? I have been waiting almost a year and I still don't have probate to settle an estate. Does anyone here have any ideas of the timescales involved?

Thanks
007

Victor

It can take quite some time.

Irish Probate on James Joyce's estate has just been completed (there had previously been French probate).

grumpytrousers

I am not a solicitor. But I would say

a) there's no 'average time'. I would presume that the executor and the solicitor have to firstly figure out how much is in the estate. If the deceased lived and died all in the one area with one bank account, it may be pretty cut and dried. If they earned outside the state, or would have had stocks or something, it can be more arduous a task - that of establishing the amount to be divvied out.
b) tax. Were the deceased tax affairs in order. Before an order of probate can be granted, a certificate of compliance from the revenue has to be issued. Thus if question marks were over the deceased, that may take time to clear up.

ultimately, there's a lot of paperwork. An aunt of mine died 3 years ago and I still don't think that the grant has issued.

I've just re-read the post you made, and if you are the executor, may I suggest you have f*** all business asking us idiots on the internet what we think, but rather you should put pen to paper, and send a stern note to the solicitor dealing with this.

Don't ring. Don't call in. Write. And keep a copy of the letter you send. And the reply. get sod all joy, threaten the law society...

antoinolachtnai

I have heard recently of what seemed quite a simple probate (parents with straightforward tax situation die of natural causes in quick succession, leave house and a couple of quid to children) taking more than 10 years. I believe (and I could be wrong) that there are tax implications if it takes longer than 10 years.

I wouldn't be surprised if it had taken this long, but it is well worth keeping gentle pressure on the executor. If you _are_ the executor, well, then it's up to you to get things moving. It is actually possible to get probate without the help of a solicitor. There was an article about how to do this in Consumer Choice magazine some years ago, I think. However, if the value is more than a few thousand euro it would definitely be in order to get some legal advice.

I believe it is possible to take legal action against an executor if they delay the process unduly. In practice this would be very difficult. Executors tend to be either relatives, friends of the family or solicitors. You do not want to get involved in litigation with any of these three classes of people if you can avoid it.

However it can happen, and a lay executor can find him- or herself in very deep stew if this were to happen.

threebeards

My mother recently needed a grant of representation for a small estate that was left by my Dad. I contacted a solicitor on her behalf who told me that the best thing to do when the estate was small and uncomplicated was to contact the relevant county registrar who will look after the application for little or no fee. If you were to ask a solicitor to look after it, they would charge between 3% and 4% of the estate. Between our initial meeting with the county registrar and the issue of the grant from the high court, it took only 6 weeks and the county reg was extremely helpful. I know the short time frame probably isn't the norm and I suppose the fact that the estate wasn't being contested helped as well. I see from your details that you're located in Laois - the relevant county reg for there is at Kilkenny courthouse which covers Kilkenny, Carlow and Laois. Phone number is 056 22073. Maybe they can help you out if your own solicitor is delaying.

grumpytrousers

a pedant writes - Co registrar for Laois is James E Cahill, and you can ring his office on 0502 21340. hth

gillka92

Hello would any one have an up to date time estimate for how long probate is taking? I see on the oireachtas website Galway is estimated at 6 with a solicitor. Does this sound too quick?

Peregrinus

Are you asking how long it will take for a grant of probate to be issued, once application is made, or how long it will take to complete the administration of the estate and pay all the legacies to those entitled?

Gloomtastic!

Woah there everyone! A 17 year-old zombie thread about a legal issue in E&BM. I’m going to:

a) Lock thread and

b) Move the thread to Legal

The Gloomster!

Apologies Mods in Legal. Can't seem to separate old from new posts on this zombie thread.