Custom case management software for UK wills and probate solicitors. STEP-compliant probate workflow, vulnerable client tracking, AML and source-of-funds verification, secure will storage with audit trail. Built for SRA-regulated practices. Fixed price from £12,000.
01. Why generic legal software fails wills and probate practices
The UK has around 12,000 SRA-regulated solicitor firms. Of these, approximately 3,500 have dedicated wills and probate departments, with around 6,000 STEP-qualified practitioners working across them. The market is large enough to support a dedicated software category, but most practices use generic case management platforms (LEAP, Clio, ProClaim, Iken, Quill) configured for general civil practice and customised for wills and probate with varying degrees of awkwardness.
The generic platforms work for the core file management task. They fail at the specific workflows that distinguish wills and probate from other practice areas. STEP-compliant probate has 7-12 structured stages with statutory and STEP-recommended deadlines at each, none of which the generic systems track natively. Vulnerable client and mental-capacity workflow under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 requires structured assessment and ongoing review that the generic systems support only through manual workarounds. Will storage with physical-location tracking, version control and decades-spanning retrieval is not a workflow the generic systems were architected for.
The compounding effect is operational. SRA audits expect to see structured evidence per matter. STEP membership renewal requires demonstrable competence frameworks. The Office of the Public Guardian inspects deputyship work to a specific standard. Producing the required evidence from a generic platform configured-but-not-built for the workflow consumes significant fee-earner time and leaves audit-readiness exposed.
02. What we build
Softomate-built wills and probate software is structured around the practice areas STEP and the SRA expect. Each matter type has its own workflow, evidence requirements and timeline. The system can run standalone or sit alongside LEAP, Clio or ProClaim as a wills-and-probate-specific overlay.
Structured probate lifecycle through 7-12 stages with statutory deadlines, asset valuation, IHT400/205 preparation tracking, grant application, beneficiary distribution and final estate accounts.
Structured will drafting workflow with template library, clause management, version control. Secure digital storage plus physical location tracking for paper originals. Decades-spanning retrieval workflow.
Mental Capacity Act 2005 compliant assessment workflow. Vulnerability flags trigger extended review intervals, named-supervisor sign-off and additional audit trail per matter.
SRA risk-rating framework with Credas, SmartSearch or Onfido integration. Source-of-funds evidence per matter. Enhanced Due Diligence workflow for PEPs and complex estates.
Beneficiary records with contact history, distribution tracking, executor coordination workflow. Final estate accounts generation with HMRC-compliant formatting.
Per-matter evidence trail covering capacity assessments, AML checks, fee billing, conflict checks, supervision sign-offs. Inspection-ready audit packs exportable in under 5 minutes per matter.
If you want to keep your existing case management platform for accounts and general matter records, we build an overlay that handles the wills-and-probate-specific workflows on top of your existing data.
Optional client portal for executors and beneficiaries showing matter progress, document upload, fee status. Reduces inbound calls during long-running probate matters by 50-70% in typical deployments.
03. Pricing
Solo practitioner (£12,000-£22,000): Single-fee-earner system covering will drafting workflow, basic probate lifecycle, client onboarding with AML, will storage and SRA-compliant audit trail. Live in 6-8 weeks.
Multi-fee-earner practice (£25,000-£45,000): 3-12 fee earner system. All solo features plus full STEP-compliant probate workflow, beneficiary management, vulnerable client and capacity tracking, supervisor sign-off framework, client portal. Live in 10-14 weeks.
All builds include 90-day post-launch hyper-care, structured handover documentation and ongoing support options. UK hosted on AWS UK regions. UK GDPR-compliant DPA signed. SRA Code of Conduct review included in handover.
Work with us
Book a 30-minute call with a senior consultant who understands SRA and STEP frameworks. We will scope your current workflow, audit-readiness gaps and integration requirements, then produce a fixed-price scoping document within 48 hours.
Softomate Solutions Limited
Deen Dayal Yadav
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