My mother had alzhiemers and recently passed away she was a resident
of florida, the attorney that has been handling the guadianship of our
mother for our famly has sent a a qoute to do the probate, the estate
is worth aproximently 4 million dollars, she would like to charge
aproximently $63,000 do do the probate and $15,000 to file the federal
taxes. The probate would take place in Sarasota County, FL. Does this
seem like a fair price

Dear msnagle-ga;

Thank you for allowing me to answer your interesting question. Florida
law permits probate lawyers to charge a flat rate, an hourly rate
and/or a fee based upon a percentage of the estate. I contacted a
reputable law firm that specializes in probate law in Pensacola
Florida and discussed your question with them personally via
telephone:

According to the fine folks at McDonald, Fleming and Moorhead law
firm, it isn?t the amount of the estate but the type of assets and
complexity of the Will that often determines the legal fees in probate
cases. ?Estates vary from very simple to extremely complicated, based
on the type of assets owned, the number of beneficiaries, and special
conditions in the Will. If the decedent owned real property in ten
different states, you can be sure the probate costs will be a lot
higher than if he or she just owned ?liquid? funds in financial
institutions.?

Having said that, your run-of-the-mill, uncontested, simple probate
would typically be a ?per hour? job, but a more complicated probate
would result in a potentially larger flat fee or percentage of the
estate?s value.

MCDONALD FLEMING & MOORHEAD
STATEWIDE PROBATE
http://www.statewideprobate.com/default.htm

Statewide Probate
McDonald Fleming Moorhead
25 W. Government St.
Pensacola, FL 32502

Phone (850) 477-0660 
Toll-free 1-866-245-6789
Fax (850) 477-4510


According to Michael W. Porter, P.A., of St. Petersburg, Florida, the
amount that a firm may legally charge in Florida for Formal Estate
Administration is 3% of the overall estate value ? adding to that
amount any extraneous costs associated with the process. The costs
associated with a Formal Estate Administration in Florida will include
the attorney fees (hourly, flat rate or percentage) plus the Court
filing fee, the fiduciary bond, publication of Notice to Creditors,
certified copies, photocopies, postage and long distance telephone
calls, etc. Porter says this about the fees in his article:

?Legal fees for a Formal Estate Administration are typically three
percent (3%) of the probate assets (i.e. if the probate assets are
$100,000.00, legal fees would be $3,000.00). Extraordinary legal
services which may be required are billed in addition thereto.
(extraordinary services include such items as a will contest, or other
litigation, tax audit, tax return preparation, sale of real estate,
determination of homestead, determination of beneficiaries, etc.) The
Personal Representative is also entitled to a fee of three percent
(3%) of the probate assets.?
FINDLAW
http://library.findlaw.com/2000/May/1/126207.html

Michael W. Porter, P.A.
535 49th Street North
St. Petersburg, Florida 33710
Phone (727) 327-7600
Fax (727) 328-1937
Email: mwporter@ix.netcom.com
http://michaelporter.lawoffice.com/

The bottom line is this: the quote you received MAY very well be
within the reasonable range for what the attorney is up against. It
would take another Florida licensed attorney who had ALL the details
of the estate, the number of creditors, amounts owed, number of
beneficiaries, itemized list of property and financial assets, etc in
order to be able to second guess the quote you have been given. With
that in mind, I have provided contact information to my sources so you
can conveniently arrange for a ?second opinion? if necessary about
what might be consider "fair". Be prepared to explain all the fine
details in order to get a more accurate answer. In the meantime here
are some more quotes that confirm what I have learned about probate
fees in Florida:

?Legal fees are approximately 3% of the probate assets and the
personal representative (executor) can also take a fee up to 3%.?
FELD LAW OFFICES - ALICE REITER FELD, P.A.
http://www.florida-elderlaw.com/New_Folder/Probate.htm


?Probate costs money. Attorney's fees for probate services generally
range around three percent of the total value of the probate estate.
In addition, court costs and other expenses are due for filing fees
and publication costs?
CARDILLO, KEITH & BONAQUIST, P.A.
http://www.ckblaw.com/estate_planning_services.htm

I hope you find that my answer exceeds your expectations. If you have
any questions about my research please post a clarification request
prior to rating the answer. Otherwise I welcome your rating and your
final comments and I look forward to working with you again in the
near future. Thank you for bringing your question to us.

Best regards;
Tutuzdad-ga ? Google Answers Researcher



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8-27-2005

Yes, the price you were quoted was fair, especially in view of the
fact that he/she could have charged $120,000.

(1) Be sure to have a breakdown of the form that the assets are in: 
cash, stock, CD's, real estate, pension, etc.

(2) Interview with at least 2-3 attorneys before you find one you feel
comfortable with and ask if they have experience with larger estates
and if they can provide at least 2 references.

(3) The tax return should be done by a CPA or tax accountant
experienced in doing estate tax returns.

Be sure to scrutinize any fee agreement/contract you are asked to sign
BEFORE you sign it.

4KEITH (I'm NOT a GOOGLE Researcher)

Be sure to also check any attorney you are considering hiring with the
Florida Bar Association, www.flabar.org, to make sure you have checked
their background so that there are no ethics violations against them.