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Wills & Estates/Probate & Estate Administration
— Probate · Surrey, BC

Probate, handled so the executor is protected.

Applying for a grant, gathering and valuing the estate, dealing with debts and taxes, and distributing what is left. The administrative work that follows a death, done properly.

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(778) 262-2835

Your first 30 minutes are free. If you have been named executor and are not sure where to start, that is the normal place to begin.

— Overview

Being named executor is a job, and a personal liability.

Most people named as executor have never done it before, and discover that it is an administrative role with real legal duties attached. You are responsible for identifying and securing the assets, giving proper notice to those entitled, settling debts and taxes before distributing anything, keeping accounts, and treating the beneficiaries even-handedly.

The duties matter because an executor who distributes early, misses a creditor, overlooks a tax liability or fails to notify someone entitled can end up personally answerable for it. Most of the trouble we are asked to fix was not dishonesty; it was an executor moving faster than the process allows, usually to be helpful to the family.

— What we handle

Probate & estate administration.

I.Applications for a grant of probate
II.Grants of administration where there is no will
III.Notice to beneficiaries & those entitled
IV.Identifying & valuing estate assets
V.Debts, creditors & tax clearance
VI.Estate accounting & passing of accounts
VII.Distribution & executor releases
VIII.Acting for executors facing a claim
— How it runs

Four stages, in order.

I
Secure

Assets are identified and protected, the will is located and reviewed, and formal notice is given to everyone entitled to receive it. Nothing is distributed at this stage, however pressing it feels.

SECURE
II
Apply

The application for a grant is prepared and filed with the court, with the supporting material the registry requires. Where there is no will, the application is for administration instead.

APPLY
III
Administer

Assets are called in and valued, debts and taxes are dealt with, and accounts are kept as you go. Accurate records here are what protect the executor later.

ADMINISTER
IV
Distribute

Once liabilities are settled and the time for claims has run, the estate is distributed and releases are obtained, so the executor is discharged rather than left exposed.

DISTRIBUTE
— Common questions

What executors usually ask first.

Does every estate have to go through probate?+
No. Whether a grant is needed depends on what the estate holds and how it was held. Assets owned in joint tenancy, or with a valid beneficiary designation, can pass outside the estate. Land and most bank or investment holdings in the deceased's sole name will usually require a grant before anyone will deal with them.
I have been named executor. What should I not do?+
Do not distribute anything early, however reasonable the request. Do not mix estate money with your own. Do not ignore a beneficiary who is asking questions. Early distribution is the single most common way executors create personal liability for themselves, because debts, taxes and claims can surface afterwards.
Someone died without a will. What happens?+
The estate is distributed according to the rules set out in British Columbia legislation rather than by anyone's wishes, and someone must apply to be appointed administrator. The process is similar to probate but the entitlement is fixed by statute. See also our page on inheritance and estate disputes.
Can I be paid for acting as executor?+
An executor is generally entitled to reasonable compensation for the work, and the estate also bears the proper costs of administering it. What is reasonable depends on the size and complexity of the estate and how much work was actually involved, and it is approved as part of the accounts.
A beneficiary is threatening to challenge the will. What now?+
Stop distributing and get advice immediately. An executor caught between beneficiaries has a difficult, even-handed role to hold, and acting on one side of a dispute is how executors become personally exposed. We act for executors defending estates as well as for beneficiaries bringing claims.

See also estate planning and wills · contested estates and wills variation · transferring estate property.

— Begin

Named as executor?

The first 30 minutes are free. Call (778) 262-2835 or send a confidential inquiry — every conversation is privileged.

Call now Free consultation