Last week I wrote about how lucrative acting as an executor can be, noting it’s a job that doesn’t require formal qualifications or experience. I promised a follow-up about how accessible the job really is.
I might reasonably be accused of “blowing hot and cold” or “talking out of both sides of my mouth” because of a previous column, published June 23 rd , 2024, where I give an onerous list of executor duties and suggest that you might want to hire a professional to save your loved ones the burden. Yes, acting as executor comes with a lot of responsibilities. But it absolutely can be
handled by anyone who’s reasonably diligent and organized.
But what if you don’t have the first clue about what to do?
Law Firm Handling the Estate Grant
Your best resource is the law firm you hire to handle the legal work to obtain the estate grant – commonly referred to as probate.
Don’t automatically hire the firm that’s holding onto the original will. Call around to find a firm that will be responsive to your questions, letting them know you will require step-by- step instructions.
You should be calling around anyway as due diligence to obtain competitive rates and to ensure they have resources to give your file timely attention.
I could stop there because the law firm should be able to guide you. But I’ll go through some of the main functions of an executor and identify available resources.
Funeral Home
The funeral is easy peasy. Funeral directors will walk you through making decisions about the full range of services they offer as related to an obituary, funeral or celebration of life and dealing with the remains.
Some will also, for a fee, help you with executor functions like applying for the CPP death benefit and sending notices to Service Canada, ICBC, Canada Revenue Agency, banks, credit card companies and utility providers.
Home, Yard and Contents
Another key responsibility is looking after the deceased’s home, yard and contents.
You don’t need to know the ins and outs to:
1. contact the insurer to ensure ongoing insurance is in place,
2. hire a realtor with experience dealing with estate properties,
3. bring in a business that will liquidate contents of value and haul away the junk,
and
4. hire a house cleaner and yard maintenance company.
Financial assets and debts
Then there’s identifying and dealing with financial assets and debts, which might seem the most daunting.
The law firm handling the estate grant will help with the identification end of things, reaching out directly to financial institutions to obtain bank and investment account information needed to disclose assets to the court. They will also identify secured debts and issue a notice to deal with any debts that might be lurking in the shadows.
You don’t need any knowledge about investing to hire a Certified Financial Planner to ensure that the proceeds of the estate are properly invested until they can be distributed.
Income Tax
How can you possibly look after the income tax side of an estate if your mother still prepares your own income tax returns? No worries there. Simply hire an accountant who will let you know the information and documentation they need in order to handle everything for you.
Distribution to Beneficiaries
Finally, there’s the distribution to beneficiaries. The law firm will help you interpret the will. And will likely offer the additional services of handling the distribution to beneficiaries for you.
This Column is Not a Guide
I have covered the main areas of executor functions with only a cursory review. This column cannot be relied on as a guide. My goal is to share the reality that there are resources readily available to help any reasonably diligent and organized person
navigate the role of executor.
If you would like my recommendations of particular service providers I’ve referred to,
please reach out to me.
Paul Hergott
Lawyer Paul Hergott began writing as a columnist in January 2007. Achieving Justice, based on Paul’s personal injury practice at the time, focused on injury claims and road safety. It was published weekly for 13 ½ years until July 2020, when his busy legal practice no longer left time for writing.
Paul was able to pick up writing again in January 2024, After transitioning his practice to estate administration and management.
Paul’s intention is to write primarily about end of life and estate related matters, but he is very easily distracted by other topics.
You are encouraged to contact Paul directly at [email protected] with legal questions and issues you would like him to write about.
