Structured Support for Stalled Probate Administrations
Much probate friction begins as an administrative blockage rather than active litigation. Human Law helps executors and professional advisers identify what is preventing progress, assess the relevant evidence, and select the proportionate next step.
Our work focuses on two operational zones:
- Caveat resolution — where the Grant is blocked before issue.
- Administration deadlock — where co-executor inaction, accounting concerns, or threatened claims have stalled progress.
Where Registry procedure, information exchange, negotiation, or ADR can resolve the matter, we provide staged fixed-fee support. If proceedings or representation on the court record become necessary, we prepare a clear handover to an appropriate litigation practitioner.
* 100% of your £400 audit fee rolls forward into subsequent milestones if instructed within 14 days.
The Out-of-Court Executor
A practical handbook for executors and professional advisers dealing with caveats, co-executor inaction, accounting concerns and threatened family claims.
Meet Justin Patten
Human Law is led by Justin Patten, a practising solicitor with more than 20 years’ experience in dispute resolution and private-client work.
Justin provides structured support to executors, administrators and professional advisers when a probate administration has stalled. He is also the author of The Out-of-Court Executor and published guides on elderly law and financial abuse.
Five Types of Probate Friction We Address
Remove an Estate Freeze
Registry Warning Procedure
A caveat costs £4 and can prevent the Grant from issuing. Serving a formal warning gives the caveator 14 days to respond. Depending on the response, the caveat may be removed, clarified by agreement, or require further procedural action.
Co-Executor Refusing to Act
Power Reserved, Renunciation & Citations
When a co-executor ceases contact, delays tax forms, or withholds original wills, administration freezes. Where agreement is possible, power reserved or renunciation may resolve the position. Where an executor remains unresponsive, citation procedure may provide a route forward.
Assess Inheritance Claims
1975 Act Assessment, Standstills & Settlement
We assess threatened claims, document appropriate standstill arrangements, and support negotiated settlements where authority, disclosure, and proportionality permit.
Clarify Estate Accounts
Section 25 AEA Inventory & Accounts
We help personal representatives prepare clear estate accounts, respond proportionately to information requests, and document the administration in a defensible form.
Settle Disputed Gifts & Promises
Estoppel & Lifetime Transfer Compromise
We evaluate evidence and negotiate commercial compromise settlements that unlock disputed estate property.
The Structured Resolution Pathway
Every matter begins with the Stage 01 Factual Audit & Action Plan (£400 + VAT). This comprises a 30-minute solicitor consultation and a 2-page written audit. We review core documents (≤20 pages), isolate the procedural bottleneck, quantify holding costs, and establish the most proportionate non-court route.
The audit routes executor files into one of two operational tracks:
- Zone 1: Caveat Resolution — for estates blocked at the Registry before Grant issue.
- Zone 2: Deadlock Resolution — for co-executor silence, signing refusals, accounting disputes, and financial claims.
* 100% of your £400 audit fee rolls forward into subsequent milestones if instructed within 14 days. You only fund the specific fixed-fee milestone your audit confirms is necessary.
Zone 1 — Caveat Resolution
Staged, fixed-fee pathways using Registry warning and summons procedures to seek removal or resolution of improper caveats.
Zone 2 — Deadlock Resolution
Modular tracks for inactive co-executors, citations to accept/refuse probate, section 25 accounting, and negotiated standstill agreements.
Key Commitments & Protections
Fee Certainty
Fixed fees for each procedural milestone. No open-ended hourly billing.
100% Fee Rollover
Stage 01 credits fully into Zone 1 or Zone 2 execution if instructed within 14 days.
£0/Month Dormancy Shield
No billing during Probate Registry delays, medical record extraction, or counterparty silence.
Personal Representative Alignment
Services are structured around administrative functions, with clear documentation to support cost decisions.
Clear Boundaries — What We Don’t Do
To maintain fixed-fee certainty and rapid turnaround, Human Law does not provide:
- Court litigation or trial representation
- Acting as solicitor on the court record
- Accepting formal court service
- Routine grant administration or conveyancing
- Detailed forensic bank reconciliation
* If a contested trial becomes unavoidable, your file is handed cleanly to a litigation partner with the relevant documents, chronology and preliminary analysis organised for an efficient handover.
Master Fee Summary
£400 + VAT
£1,450–£3,850 + VAT
£1,150–£5,500 + VAT
£2,500–£4,500 + VAT
* Published figures indicate the range of individual fixed-fee stages. Where more than one stage is required, the total fee is the sum of the stages instructed. Scope and price are confirmed before each stage begins.