When a close friend or family member passes away, you may be responsible for dealing with their affairs, which includes administering their estate. There is usually no need to rush to administer the estate. Usually, the first duty required of the estate trustee is to deal with the funeral arrangements. The estate trustee has an obligation to deal with the …
In Ontario, a deceased’s Will is registered with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice and an application is made for a “Certificate of Appointment of the Estate Trustee with a Will.” This process is referred to as probate. Probate also requires the payment of the estate administration tax (“EAT”) (formerly referred to as “probate fees”). The EAT is approximately 1.5 …
Applying for Probate Applying for probate is the process of registering the deceased’s Will with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice and applying for a “Certificate of Appointment of the Estate Trustee” (the executor). Probate also requires the payment of the estate administration tax. A Will must be probated in order to formally pass assets from the deceased …
Regardless of age or personal wealth, there are many Canadians who do not have a Will. Although the thought of preparing a Will may seem to be premature or too burdensome for some, the consequences of dying without a Will can be severe. If you die without a Will (this is referred to as dying “intestate”), the following complications/challenges …
Testamentary capacity is a term with a particular legal meaning, which is whether an individual has the necessary cognitive abilities to be capable to make a valid will. Learn more about lawyers acting as Estate Trustees and the use of Henson Trusts. Testamentary Capacity There is plenty of judicial guidance on what constitutes testamentary capacity. The test for testamentary …
A Henson Trust is a discretionary trust used to protect assets for disabled beneficiaries. The trustee has absolute discretion regarding the use of trust funds and the beneficiary has no legal entitlement to the trust funds. A Henson Trust can be set up by a deceased person (testamentary trust) or a living person (inter vivos trust). A Henson Trust …
