No Requirement To Use The Lawyer Who Drafted The Will

If you are a personal representative you can pick any lawyer you want. The attorney who drafted the will and keeps the original must either give it to the executor or file it with the court when the will writer (testator) dies. N.R.S. 136.050(1) specifies that, "Any person having possession of a will shall, within 30 days after knowledge of the death of the person who executed the will, deliver it to the clerk of the district court which has jurisdiction of the case or to the personal representative named in the will."

You are not required to use the lawyer who drafted the will even if the will states that they desire a specific probate attorney.

Reed & Mansfield Client Scenario:
In one case a client, who was named executor in her husband's will, came to us and told us that upon her husband's death she talked to the attorney who wrote and had the original will, and was told the probate fee would be $7,000. When she said she didn't want to use that attorney under those terms, the attorney told her she owed a $700 consultation fee and that he would only release the will after payment of that fee. That attorney's behavior, according to the account given by the client, was illegal. (We did her probate for $2300.)

Some attorneys who write wills charge a low price and keep the original will "for safe-keeping" knowing that when you die your heirs will have to contact them to get the original will. Many heirs will automatically hire the attorney with the will, with the result that they may pay much more than they have to for the probate process.

Fees

Probate Fees can vary tremendously from Lawyer to Lawyer, be suspicious of any attorneys who do not want to discuss what they will charge to do a probate.

Any lawyer who says all probate attorneys charge the same rate set by statute is not telling the truth. No court or state bar is going to criticize a lawyer who charges less than the statutory rate for a probate. Courts and the state bar are set up to protect clients against lawyers charging too much. The days when lawyers could enforce minimum fees are long since gone.

View our discounted fees for uncontested Nevada Probates:

Low Fees For Uncontested Nevada Probates

If you're probate is in California, view our Low Fees for Uncontested California probates.

Typical Fee Arrangements For Uncontested Probates

  1. The lawyer charges the statutory rate of 4% of the first $100,000 of the gross value of the estate, 3% of the next $100,000, 2% of the next $800,000, 1% of the next $9,000,000, 1/2% of the next $15,000,000 and a court determined rate for anything over $25,000,000. N.R.S. 150.060(4). Gross value means if a $500,000 house has a $400,000 mortgage the fee is charged on $500,000. In other words, most attorneys are like real estaate agents: the fee or commission is based on the value of the house w/o considering if there is a mortgage. OUR FIRM IS DIFFERENT: WE BASE FEES ON THE GROSS VALUE MINUS THE MORTGAGE. SO IN THE ABOVE EXAMPLE OUR FEE WOULD BE BASED ON A PROPERTY VALUE OF $100,000.
  2. The lawyer charges an hourly rate. Under Nevada law paralegals operating under the lawyer's supervision may charge the lawyer's rate, or the lawyer may offer a discount for the paralegal's time.
  3. INCREDIBLY, some lawyer get clients to sign retainer agreements promising to pay the lawyer the HIGHER of the above two fee arrangements.
  4. Client and lawyer are free to agree to any fee arrangement they want, subject to court approval if the fee is higher than $3,500.