Esates: Services Provided

I provide the following services for Estates:

• Grant of Probate for wills;
• Grant of Administration for when there is no will, or the will only covers a portion of the estate;
• Administration of Estates;
• Counseling Executors in administration of estates;
• Dependent Adult applications, reviews and reporting to the Courts;
• Representation of claimants and creditors for resolving disputes and in estate litigation;
• Representation of executors and beneficiaries for resolving disputes and in estate litigation;

Probate of Estate :

We do the court work for obtaining a Grant of Probate (if there is a will) or a Grant of Administration (if there is no will, also called Intestate). A Grant of Probate or Grant of Administration is a court order advising the public, financial institutions, life insurance companies, and government offices, such as Land Titles, Canada Revenue, that the Estate of the deceased has been processed through the courts. The procedure followed through the courts assures the persons dealing with the Estate that there has been public notice provided, and specific notice to relevant persons provided and the estate can be safely distributed.

Obtaining a Grant protects your executor(s) from personal liability should there be an error or mistake in distributing the estate assets and paying estate debts, including the final clearance certificate from Canada Revenue Agency for income tax and capital gains. Without a Grant, the executor is personally liable for errors or omissions made in paying debts or distributing the estate. There are situations when a Grant is mandatory, such as when Real Estate has to be transferred from the deceased’s name, or when banks or other financial have to transfer balances to the estate, they require a Grant to protect themselves prior to the transfer. As such, the Grant provides liability protection for the banks, institutions and executor of the estate.

Estate Litigation:

We also do Estate Litigation. There are many situations whereby issues may arise on the distribution of an estate, such as disagreements over distribution of assets and payment or collection on debts, or an alleged improper/invalid Will, or an improper or unreasonable distribution of an estate, or a dependent person not getting a reasonable share of the estate as needed to look after their needs, etc

Dependent Adult Applications:

We also make court applications for the set-up of a Trustee and a Guardian for a Dependent Adult. We can also assist with the reporting and accounting to the courts after a Dependant adult application has been granted. A Court application is necessary when a loved one has lost the capacity to make decisions on their own, or the physical ability to take care of themselves, or both. The court has to appoint a Guardian for the healthcare decisions and a Trustee to look after their assets.

The cost and effort of these court applications can be avoided if the individual has completed an Enduring Power of Attorney and a Personal Directive prior to losing their capacity to make these decisions.