Bereaved families administering a loved one’s estate continue to face delays with Grant of Probate applications in England and Wales. A recent STEP article reports that 23,572 applications were received by HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) in January 2022. This is an increase of 5,297 (29%) on the 18,275 applications received in December 2021 for probate. The article also states that 2021 was the second-highest year in the past ten years for Grants issued.

It’s no secret - the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has posed several challenges to almost every aspect of our lives. The Wills and probate industry is no exception.

On Monday 14th October the Secretary of State for Justice, Robert Buckland, announced that the proposal to dramatically increase probate fees will be withdrawn after months of awaiting parliamentary approval.

Back in May 2019, we wrote about how probate registries in England and Wales were suffering from processing delays on Grant of Probate and Grant of Letter of Administration applications. We’re now a couple of months down the line and the backlog continues. Therefore, we wanted to provide our clients and business partners with another update.

As of Monday 14th October 2019, the proposal to increase probate fees has been withdrawn. Click here to read our latest blog post on the matter. Probate Registries in England and Wales are currently reporting severe delays on Grant of Probate and Grant of Letter of Administration applications. Due to the rollout of a new IT case management system, the process has been dramatically slowed down. This means that it’s taking longer for the Registries to process applications for Grants of Probate and Letters of Administration.