Example of Professional Deputyship Costs
Solicitor's working for Court of Protection clients as their Deputy are subject to fixed costs, which are set by the Court. If the clients assets are greater than £16,000, Solicitors can ask for their fees to be assessed by a Costs Judge at the Supreme Courts Costs Office, if they feel the fixed cost limit is inappropriate for the amount of work they have done. The fixed costs are therefore to be treated as a minimum fee you can expect to be charged. It is entirely normal for fees to be greater, and sometimes far greater than the fixed costs limits. All fees are payable from the assets of the person who lacks capacity.
The Court of Protection Practice Direction on Fixed Costs for professionals acting as Deputies for Property and Financial Affairs in the first year are as follows:
Initial fees to request Deputyship
- To apply for Deputyship (inc VAT) - £1020
- Court Costs - £500
- Medical Professional to complete COP3 form - up to £500
Annual Deputyship fees
There will also likely to be draftsman fees incurred too, which form part of the assessed bill.
- Solicitor management fee - £1800
- Supervision fee - up to £320
- Security Bond - calculated on clients assets - if assets of £250,000 - £500 charge
- If a Solicitor chooses to have their costs assessed it costs a minimum of £200. There will also likely to be draftsman fees incurred too, which form part of the assessed bill.
- Preparation of annual accounts to the Court (inc VAT)- £282
- Preparation of HMRC income tax return (inc VAT) - £282
Total Annual costs for Deputyship - £5,404
Note - There are extra costs of up to £1,800 if the Solicitor needs to deal with the house sale or purchase of a property.
So in Year 1 a person with a Professional Deputy will have paid a minimum of £5,404
On average, people with Alzheimer's disease live for 8 to 10 years after their symptoms begin. Life expectancy does, however, vary considerably depending on how old the person is. For example, people diagnosed in their 60s and early 70s can expect to live for around 7 to 10 years, whereas someone diagnosed in their 90s will, on average, live for about 3 years.
Only taking into account the ongoing annual charges for Deputyship at £3404. If the person lived for 10 years, they would have paid out over £34,000 in fees to the Solicitor acting for them and this is the best case scenario.
In order to prevent these spiralling costs year after year, make Lasting Power of Attorney documents. This will enable you to appoint attorneys that you trust such as your spouse or adult children. The LPA documents will ensure your family have the legal rights to deal with your property and financial affairs and make health and welfare decisions for you should you ever lose mental capacity.