Estate of Jack XXXXX. Petitioner Leonore XXXXX petitions for close approval of first and final account for probate valued at approximately $34,000. Estate attorney seeks $1,398.98 in statutory fees and $2,450.00 in extraordinary fees for helping with tax matters, sale of personal property, sale of mineral interests and disposition of burial plots. Of the $2,450.00 sought in extraordianry fees, the probate examiner is questioning whether or not the attorney should receive $250.00 in extraordinary fees for obtaining a tax ID number and advising the executor to file a tax return. Examiner thinks the $250.00 was for ordinary services, which would not justify extraordinary fees. The rest of the extraordinary fee doesn't appear to be in question.
In some counties, certain actions taken by an estate attorney automatically trigger justification for extraordinary fees. For example, in one county, if an estate attorney assists in sale of estate real property, they are entitled to an additional $1,000.00 in extraordinary fees. If an extraordinary fee is not per se allowed under local rules, an estate attorney generally has to demonstrate that the extraordinary fee was for services not in the ordinary course of a probate and that the fee was justified due to the novelty of the issue involved, complexity involved, and expertise brought to bear on the situation.