Probate and Estate Settlement

We urge our clients to invest in estate planning while they are alive, in part to avoid costly probate and estate administration fees at the time of death.

Because each estate is unique, and there are often surprises through the process, we charge hourly for this work. Fortunately, much of the work does not need to be done at attorney rates, but instead by well-trained paralegals who focus on estate settlement and have a much lower hourly rate.   

At the beginning of your engagement, we will do our best to provide you with an estimated range for the fees we expect the work to entail, given the complexity of the estate. We will keep you up-to-date through the process if new developments occur, requiring more work that would increase your fee.

You should beware of attorneys or institutions that base their fees on a percentage of the estate, without regard to the estate’s complexity or work required for settlement.  This typically results in paying significantly more than needed.