How Much Does an Estate Attorney Cost

The Short Answer: $3,000 to $23,000+

The average estate spends $12,400 on legal and accounting fees combined. But the actual number depends on the billing model your state uses, the estate's complexity, and whether any disputes arise.

Three Billing Models

Statutory or presumptive percentage fees. California sets attorney compensation as a percentage of the estate's gross value. Florida has a statutory schedule of fees presumed reasonable for ordinary services. For a $1 million estate in California, the attorney's statutory fee under Probate Code Section 10810 is $23,000. The executor can also collect $23,000 in statutory commissions. That's $46,000 gone before anyone pays the mortgage, funeral, or a single creditor.

Hourly rates. Most estate attorneys outside statutory-fee states charge $200 to $500 per hour, depending on the market and their experience. A straightforward estate with no disputes might need 15 to 30 hours of legal work ($3,000 to $15,000). A contested estate with family litigation or creditor disputes can easily reach 100+ hours.

Flat fees. Some attorneys offer flat-fee packages for simple, uncontested estates — typically $2,500 to $7,000 for basic probate administration. This works well when the estate is small, there's a clear will, and no one is fighting.

What Drives Costs Up

Real estate. Selling property through an estate adds appraisals, title searches, court petitions for sale approval, and potential disputes over valuation.

Multiple jurisdictions. Assets in different states or countries require separate probate proceedings (or resealing of grants), each with its own filing fees and attorney retainers.

Family disputes. A contested will, a convenience account challenge, or a beneficiary claiming the executor mismanaged funds can add tens of thousands in litigation costs. Contested estate cases average $10,000 to $50,000 in attorney fees per party.

Tax complexity. Estates above the federal estate tax exclusion ($15 million for 2026 deaths) or state-level thresholds require estate tax returns prepared by specialized attorneys or CPAs.

When You Actually Need an Estate Attorney

You should hire one if:

• The estate is being contested (someone is challenging the will or the executor's actions)
• There's real estate to sell or transfer across state lines
• The estate might be insolvent (debts exceed assets)
• Tax returns are complex (estate tax, income from multiple sources)
• You're dealing with cross-border assets

When You Can Handle It Yourself

Many families administer straightforward estates without an attorney:

• The estate qualifies for a small estate affidavit (below state thresholds)
• All bank accounts have POD beneficiaries or joint owners
• There's no real estate or it transfers outside probate
• The will is clear and no one is contesting it
• The only assets are bank accounts and personal property

For these estates, the work is administrative — gathering documents, filing court paperwork, contacting banks, and distributing funds. It takes time and organization, but not necessarily legal expertise.

An executor administering a mid-size estate spends an average of 570 hours on the process. Most of that time is administrative rather than legal — tracking down accounts, managing paperwork, communicating with banks and creditors.

The Bank Accounts & Financial Claims After Death toolkit covers the full administrative process with checklists and scripts, helping you handle the routine work yourself and reserve attorney hours for the decisions that genuinely require legal judgment.