Estate administration can be a complex and emotionally taxing process for families, especially after the death of a loved one. For legal professionals guiding clients through this journey, understanding the challenges in estate administration is key to providing effective advice. Whether you are working with Executors, beneficiaries, or the family of the deceased, it's crucial to navigate both the legal intricacies and the personal sensitivities involved in the process.
We understand that it can be difficult to approach the subject of involving a third party in the administration of an estate with your client, due to their fears of escalating costs and the estate taking longer to be resolved. We explore some of the common challenges faced during estate administration, such as needing to outsource specialist aspects, reconstructing family trees, and administering overseas assets, and offer practical advice for helping clients through this process.
Accelerating the estate administration process
The estate administration process can be lengthy and involves multiple steps, such as filing the Will, notifying creditors, paying debts, and distributing assets. The complexity and length of the probate process can lead to delays in distributing assets to beneficiaries, causing frustration and sometimes even conflict. As you’re aware, outsourcing the specialist aspects of estate administration can speed up the process and allow distribution to happen sooner. Providers of these services, such as Title Research, have the knowledge and experience to make the task or project progress more smoothly and quickly than if you were to carry out the work yourself.
At Title Research, we have a dedicated team of experts available to complete the intricacies of estate administration cases that most of our clients are not so familiar with. We deal with North American shareholdings on a daily basis and are aware of all the potential pitfalls that can catch people out. We can take instruction to:
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Formally verify the current status of a shareholding directly with a US Transfer Agent e.g. to establish current ownership, the number of shares held, and whether it is held in certificated or electronic format and provide a date of death valuation;
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Validate whether certificates held are valid;
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Transfer ownership of a holding and arrange for dividends to be reissued. This includes completion of all relevant US forms, such as transfer paperwork, Affidavit of Domicile, W-8BEN and W-8BEN-E forms, as well as obtaining a Medallion Signature Guarantee;
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Arrange the sale of a holding post-transfer to remit funds to the UK estate – we complete all relevant paperwork, including stockbroker forms;
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Make an application to the IRS to gain tax certification for a holding when US assets forming part of a UK estate exceed $60,000, the output of which is a Federal Transfer Certificate or Form 5173 (please see Federal Transfer Certificate);
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Advise on escheated assets and lodge claims with the relevant State Comptroller’s Office to reclaim funds on behalf of the estate (Please see Escheatment).
When we are reconstructing a family tree, we know what to look out for due to our 60 years of experience and can navigate the ever-increasing complexities in the family makeup to ensure that all the entitled beneficiaries are accounted for.
In an unregulated industry, look to other accreditations
There is a wide range of choices for providers of specialist services. Your client could make a decision based solely on price, but in an unregulated industry, such as genealogy and people tracing, looking for other independent accreditations can be very helpful. For example, does the provider hold FCA regulation that allows them to mediate on behalf of the estate to obtain insurance directly? What arrangements do they have if they need to engage a third party outside of the UK? Do they hold professional indemnity insurance? These are all points to consider that may affect the advice you give to your client.
At Title Research, we maintain the highest ethical standards and uphold your valued business relationships. Your clients are your clients – we’ll simply be there when you need our help.
How transparent is the provider’s pricing?
Finally, it is worth considering the transparency of the price you are being quoted. If it is a fixed price for a piece of work, check what is and is not included within this. For example, is the use of databases included, or is this charged as an additional disbursement? If a time and expense quotation is provided, ask what the hourly rate being used is likely to be. Title Research applies various hourly rates depending on the experience level of the person undertaking the work – much as you may do within your firm – and can inform you of the average rate used.
Contingency or commission fees can seem attractive to lay people, as they are often presented in a way that suggests that it doesn’t cost the estate anything. However, you may wish to advise your client of the STEP guidelines published on this subject which urge caution. Contingency or commission fees can often be disproportionate to the work involved, as a fee based on the percentage of the total estate is liable to change. On this basis, it would be difficult for a Personal Representative to justify incurring the increased and uncertain costs involved in hiring a firm based on a contingency fee arrangement, when a more certain and most likely cheaper option was available. It is worth calculating the approximate fee that would be paid using a percentage fee and comparing that to an hourly rate or fixed price quotation.
At Title Research, we believe that pricing should be based on the work involved and not on the value of the estate. That's why we advocate for fixed fee or time and expense pricing, as these deliver clearer transparency and predictability, as well as the ability to set a budget for flexibility and control.
Title Research provides fast, fixed-fee access to genealogical research and asset repatriation services, making us the safe choice for the resolution of complex estate administration cases. If you want to find out more, get in touch with our Client Services Team by calling 0345 87 27 600 or emailing info@titleresearch.com.
Topics: Probate, Support, Estate administration, Client Care, Accreditation
