Grant of probate service for law firms

Where a claim for compensation is being pursued on behalf of a deceased person’s estate, a grant of representation (probate or letters of administration) will usually be required to progress the claim.

Our Estate Administration team acts regularly for the clients of both Hugh James, and other law firms, in obtaining grants of representation required for compensation claims.

What is the process for instructing Hugh James to obtain a grant of representation?

Please make an enquiry using the form below in the first instance, and we will contact you to discuss your requirements.

If your client wishes to instruct Hugh James, we will need to engage with them directly as clients, but they will remain your clients in respect of their claim.  Our involvement will be limited to obtaining the grant of representation.

If your client’s preference is for us to liaise with you directly and for you to send on our communications to your client, we are happy to do this.

If your client chooses to liaise with us directly, we will, with their consent, keep you updated regarding the progress of the grant application.

We will provide a questionnaire to complete with details about the estate and will request certain documents (including the original will and death certificate).  We will then complete the required application for your client to approve and sign.  Once the application has been completed and signed, we will submit it to the probate registry.  When the grant of representation has been received, we will provide this to you and your client.

How long does it take to obtain a grant of representation?

Once we have received a signed letter of engagement, payment of our fees, and all the required information and documents, we will prepare the application for the grant of representation.  In straightforward matters, this stage usually takes four to six weeks.

Once the application for probate is submitted to the probate registry, it can take up to a further six months for the grant of probate to be issued.

If there is a court deadline and the grant of representation is needed before the deadline, please make us aware of this.  It may be possible for the probate registry to issue the grant on an urgent basis.