How can I find out the reason for a caveat being put on Will?

[Donny462]

I am the Executor of my Mum's Last Will and Testament. I applied for Grant of Probate on 28th August, then on 30th August I received an email informing me that my application had been stopped by a Caveat put on by my Sister.

Please could anyone tell me how I can find out the reason given for the caveat?

I actually went to see a Solicitor who supposedly specialises in Contentious Probate, there was a huge 'cockup' with them not sending the email out confirming the appt and detailing what i. d I needed etc, then they sent me to the wrong office, then 20 minus into the appt, someone knocked on the door and said we'd have to move as that room was booked to someone else, then when I received the letter from the solicitor stating what had happened in our meeting and the next steps to take, there were so many mistakes it was unbelievable....I don't mean grammatical mistakes, mistakes in repeating what we'd told her at our meeting, so after having paid £432.00 for that hour and her demanding a further £500.00 to send a letter to my Sisters Solicitor, we are thinking really we should get another Solicitor as this one hasn't given a good first, second or third impression.

In the meantime, I thought I'd ask on here if there is any way I can find out the reason for the caveat so I know what we are up against.

[atticus]

You can always ask your sister!

If you do not have confidence in this solicitor you should find another.

[atticus]

The other way is to "warn off" the caveat. This is a process that can lead to litigation - effectively it tells the person lodging the caveat to "put up or shut up".

Information on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/stop-probate-appl...20to%20resolve.

[gowelboy]

I'd start by reading through the terms and conditions provided to you by your solicitor which typically would have included a 14 day cooling off period. Whilst the initial level of service sounds shocking there are a couple of red flags that stand out for me.

Firstly, I can't imagine a probate specialist charging up front fees in the way you've described because as executor you would be the client and the fees would ultimately come from the estate you are trying to wind up.

Secondly, it sounds like you deliberately sought the services of someone who "specialises in contentious probate" which suggests that perhaps you were expecting some opposition from within the family?

Assuming your solicitor has had sight of the original will and didn't raise any queries about it, I don't see how a solicitor that YOU instructed would be taking instructions from anyone else and would have thought if your sister - or anyone else - wishes to challenge the will then surely they would need to arrange their own legal representation to do so?

[Pezza54]

This is only a guess, is your sister inheriting a smaller share than yourself or other siblings?
Is it possible that your mum promised your sister an expensive/cherished item that isn't featured in the will?
Did your mum change her will recently? Has it got her signature, along with signatures of 2 witnesses?

The letter you refer to for £500.00 is hopefully the warning letter referred to by Atticus in post 3. The caveator has 14 days after receiving this letter to lodge an "Appearance" with the probate registry. If the caveator decides to make an appearance the caveat can only be removed by consent (involving negotiation) or court action (involving expensive legal costs)

You should check with your solicitor that it is the warning letter and ask about potential future legal costs if your sister's claim ends up in court

[atticus]

Commenting on post #4, the solicitor does not know that you will be the executor. You have consulted him about a dispute, following the caveat.

[Donny462]

You can always ask your sister!

If you do not have confidence in this solicitor you should find another.

Hi atticus

Thank you for your reply.

Ordinarily that would have been my first thought, but if you`ve seen my other posts regarding the loss of my Mother, you`d see why that isn`t an option sadly.

I am looking for another Solicitor.

[Donny462]

The other way is to "warn off" the caveat. This is a process that can lead to litigation - effectively it tells the person lodging the caveat to "put up or shut up".

Information on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/stop-probate-appl...20to%20resolve.

Thank you again for your response atticus , it is much appreciated.

[Donny462]

I'd start by reading through the terms and conditions provided to you by your solicitor which typically would have included a 14 day cooling off period. Whilst the initial level of service sounds shocking there are a couple of red flags that stand out for me.

Firstly, I can't imagine a probate specialist charging up front fees in the way you've described because as executor you would be the client and the fees would ultimately come from the estate you are trying to wind up.

Secondly, it sounds like you deliberately sought the services of someone who "specialises in contentious probate" which suggests that perhaps you were expecting some opposition from within the family?

Assuming your solicitor has had sight of the original will and didn't raise any queries about it, I don't see how a solicitor that YOU instructed would be taking instructions from anyone else and would have thought if your sister - or anyone else - wishes to challenge the will then surely they would need to arrange their own legal representation to do so?

Hi gowelboy

Thank you for your response. I will reply under each comment you have made to make it easier for others to follow..

"I'd start by reading through the terms and conditions provided to you by your solicitor which typically would have included a 14 day cooling off period. Whilst the initial level of service sounds shocking there are a couple of red flags that stand out for me."

Yes, I will read the Solicitors terms and conditions, thank you. I`m glad that you agree that the initial service sounds shocking, I shall try to explain what you see as `red flags` that stand out for you.

"Firstly, I can't imagine a probate specialist charging up front fees in the way you've described because as executor you would be the client and the fees would ultimately come from the estate you are trying to wind up."

I was told the fee for the initial meeting was £350.00 plus VAT , plus £12.00 which was for them to carry out an I.D check on me. When we arrived at the Solicitors Office, we were told by the Receptionist that we needed to make that payment before the Solicitor came down for our meeting, so my Partner paid it by card, the amount was £432.00. When the Solicitor came down, we told her we were shocked by having to make a card payment before even seeing her, she said the £12.00 I.D check needed to be done before she could have the meeting with us as that is the Law, and that the initial payment also had to be made prior to our meeting.. Once we were in the meeting, she told us that as Executor, my costs would be met by the Estate, she asked us if there was any money left or if it was just a property, we told her that there was mainly just Mum`s property and a small current account with just over £1500.00 in it which I`d placed into an account for the ongoing expenses for the property to be paid, e.g electricity, water rates, central heating fuel etc. We were shocked after the meeting when we received her email detailing what had happened at the meeting, and she requested a further £500.00 to write the email to my Sister`s Solicitor which she said would tell them that we would be warning off the caveat, and also that their clients had acted unlawfully in emptying Mum`s property and changing the locks, and that everything had to be returned and we would be changing the locks . That £500.00 would also cover writing to the witnesses on Mum`s Will . I haven`t yet asked why more money is being requested when I was told my costs would be met by the estate , but I suspect it may be because Mum`s house would have to be sold before their bill could be paid? That`s the only reason I can think of, though I have emailed the Solicitor to ask. I can post the emails/letters should you wish if you are having doubts over what I have said?

"Secondly, it sounds like you deliberately sought the services of someone who "specialises in contentious probate" which suggests that perhaps you were expecting some opposition from within the family?"

Yes, I specifically sought the services of someone who specialises in contentious probate, the reason being, I applied for probate on the 28th August, then on 30th August I was notified by the probate office that my application had been stopped as my Sister had put a caveat on. I had no idea what a caveat was, so I googled what it was, and what to do, and the answers came up that I needed a Solicitor who specialises in Contentious Probate...at that time I had no idea what that even meant, but as it stated that is what was needed to remove the caveat, that is what I did . The fact my Sister had put a caveat on told me that there was opposition from her, also the fact that without telling me, she`d emptied my Mother`s property and changed the locks despite knowing I was named as executor in Mum`s Will, I didn`t need to be a genius to work out that there was going to be opposition from her!

"Assuming your solicitor has had sight of the original will and didn't raise any queries about it, I don't see how a solicitor that YOU instructed would be taking instructions from anyone else and would have thought if your sister - or anyone else - wishes to challenge the will then surely they would need to arrange their own legal representation to do so?"

Yes, my Solicitor had sight of the original Will and didn`t raise any queries about it, but I apologise as I have no idea what you mean by the rest of your comment? I haven`t said that my Solicitor is taking instructions from anyone else? Yes, of course I know that anyone challenging the Will would need to arrange their own legal representation, what makes you think that isn`t the case?

I`m sorry for the length of my reply to you, but think maybe I haven`t explained myself properly or you haven`t understood what I`m trying to say?

[Donny462]

This is only a guess, is your sister inheriting a smaller share than yourself or other siblings?
Is it possible that your mum promised your sister an expensive/cherished item that isn't featured in the will?
Did your mum change her will recently? Has it got her signature, along with signatures of 2 witnesses?

The letter you refer to for £500.00 is hopefully the warning letter referred to by Atticus in post 3. The caveator has 14 days after receiving this letter to lodge an "Appearance" with the probate registry. If the caveator decides to make an appearance the caveat can only be removed by consent (involving negotiation) or court action (involving expensive legal costs)

You should check with your solicitor that it is the warning letter and ask about potential future legal costs if your sister's claim ends up in court

Hi Pezza54

Thank you for your reply, I`m really grateful.

No, my Sister isn`t inheriting a smaller amount, nor has she been promised something which isn`t featured in the Will, this is the laughable part about it, she doesn`t even know what is in the Will yet, she just wants to be the executor and not me so she can have control of everything. She is my older Sister and has tried to control and bully me all of my life,

The £500.00 is to write the letter to my Sister`s Solicitor which she said would tell them that we would be warning off the caveat, and also that their clients had acted unlawfully in emptying Mum`s property and changing the locks, and that everything had to be returned and we would be changing the locks . That £500.00 would also cover writing to the witnesses on Mum`s Will . The warning letter she estimated would cost around £1500.00 to prepare and send out.

My Solicitor said if the matter ended up going to Court it could cost between £80,000 to £100,000 and whoever lost would also have to pay the other parties costs and that is why they encourage people to try settle before hand as Judges aren`t happy if the costs end up being more than the estate value..

I hope this makes things a little clearer.

[Pezza54]

Thanks for your post providing further info
You should obtain more quotes/estimates from contentious probate solicitors. Ask them if you have to live local to their offices. You may find they don't require face-to-face meetings
It sounds as if your sister is intending to claim that you are unsuitable as executor
Please see the article "Removing and substituting executors" at www.wrighthassall.co.uk

[Pezza54]

Have you contacted you mother's bank to let them know you are the named executor and have applied for probate?
I am aware of a case where a son (not the executor) of the deceased went to his parent's bank with ID and a copy of the death certificate, and the bank released funds to him, after he told them there was no will and probate wasn't required

[Donny462]

Thanks for your post providing further info
You should obtain more quotes/estimates from contentious probate solicitors. Ask them if you have to live local to their offices. You may find they don't require face-to-face meetings
It sounds as if your sister is intending to claim that you are unsuitable as executor
Please see the article "Removing and substituting executors" at www.wrighthassall.co.uk

Hi Pezza54

Thank you for your reply, it is much appreciated.

I ended up writing to the Solicitors who placed the caveat on for my Sister to ask why it had been placed on, I also said that his clients had acted unlawfully in emptying Mum`s property and then changing the locks and that I wished them to be notified that I would be changing the locks and they were not allowed in the property again unless in my company. The Solicitor didn`t respond as clearly my Sister didn`t want to pay out for him to reply, (despite the fact her and her Husband are millionaires!), instead I received a letter from my two Sister`s, which starts by saying they don`t want bad blood between us all and they wish to resolve it amicably, but then they go on to assassinate my character and basically accuse me of stealing from Mum...they have actually already reported me to the Safeguarding team of the Social services for financial abuse of Mum, the safeguarding team got Mum`s bank statements and did a full investigation and of course found nothing untoward as I have never taken a penny from Mum, in fact I have been subsidising her for a long while, but they have seemingly ignored the findings of the safeguarding Investigation.

Yes you are right, they are claiming that I am unfit to be executor of Mother`s Will. I have been executor of Mum and Dad`s Wills for 30 years. Since Mum`s passing, my Sisters have been nothing short of spiteful and vindictive, e.g they left my Partner`s name off the flowers for Mum`s funerals, I was told that a MOTHER wreath was being done for myself and my two Sisters and it was £60.00 each, on the day of the funeral I was shocked to see they hadn`t got a MOTHER wreath but something else and had put their two Husbands names on and left my Partner`s name off, despite the fact their Husbands hadn`t even seen Mum for years, let alone done anything for her, whereas my partner did all of Mum`s shopping, picked her med`s up for her and went to visit at least 3 times a week and Mum thought the world of him! I was told by other people at the funeral that my Partners name had been missed off the flowers, everyone knew how much my Partner did for Mum and how much that would have hurt us both. Then they put the caveat on the Grant for probate application, then emptied Mum`s house before she`d even been buried two weeks and changed the locks so I couldn`t get into the property, and have been making horrible posts on social media about me and encouraging other people to write horrible things .

I have attached the letter from my Sister`s for your information but obviously blocked out names etc, as you can imagine, it has really upset me as all I`ve ever done is be a good Sister to them both and looked after Mum to the best of my ability .

I am unsure what to do now, I don`t know whether to reply to their letter myself and tell them a few home truths, or whether to get a Solicitor to write to them on my behalf, what would be your advice please ?

[Donny462]

Have you contacted you mother's bank to let them know you are the named executor and have applied for probate?
I am aware of a case where a son (not the executor) of the deceased went to his parent's bank with ID and a copy of the death certificate, and the bank released funds to him, after he told them there was no will and probate wasn't required

Hi again Pezza54

Thank you again for your new reply.

Yes, I contacted the bank, did all the necessary things and they closed Mum`s account and I`ve opened a new account and put Mum`s money in it to use it to pay for the upkeep of the property until it is sold, e.g electricity, water rates, central heating fuel bills.

[Pezza54]

You said your sister wasn't getting a smaller share, implying that siblings are getting equal shares
This may be what she is concerned about. Is there a reason why you won't provide her with a copy of the will? When she reads all siblings are inheriting the same, hopefully she will withdraw her threat of court action.
Her letter sounds serious about starting court action to remove you as executor. You stated she was wealthy so she is probably not worried about the legal costs.
Defending court action could reduce estate funds significantly. In my opinion you should try to negotiate with your sister