January 2019 - Garton & Harris

One of the issues in the back of most people’s minds when they think about planning their estates is how to keep everyone happy. That goal may be much easier to attain and estate administration much simpler when British Columbia residents put into place some pertinent things in place when writing their plans. One of those includes choosing the right executor to administer the will.

Being reasonable in every aspect of estate planning will likely keep family members from tearing each other apart when the time comes for a plan to be executed. And that not only goes for money, but for personal effects as well. A testator wouldn’t want anyone fighting over items considered to have sentimental value such as an heirloom handed down from generation to generation. Not everything included in a will has a great monetary value and sometimes items that have emotions attached to them can cause more problems. So, it is necessary that an honest, open discussion should take place around these things.

When it comes to the chosen executor, he or she should have regular communication with the beneficiaries. It will go a long way to reducing any suspicion that things aren’t on the up and up. A testator should suggest that his or her executor provide beneficiaries with any pertinent reports, answers to questions and steps being taken to administer to the estate.

Working with a British Columbia lawyer will ensure that a testator’s will is clear, within the letter of the law and reasonable. When everything is as it should be in an estate plan, estate administration should be relatively seamless. When this is the case, loved ones should have little reason to quibble.

Most people believe they should be fair when writing their estate plans. But when a British Columbia testator (one who writes a will) doesn’t have children of his or her own and would like to leave assets to nieces and nephews, he or she may feel like those assets should be divided equally among those relatives. However, wills aren’t one size fits all and if a testator feels closer to certain nieces and nephews than others and would like that reflected in an estate plan, he or she has every right to do so.

As long as a will satisfies legal obligations, a person can leave his or her assets to whomever he or she pleases. A niece or nephew who would have received a share in intestacy had there been no will would have standing to contest the will if there are valid grounds to do so. Such may be the case in the instance of undue influence or testamentary capacity etc.

People who are left out of wills can contest them if they believe they were left out after having been promised to be included or if the evidence suggests the will was written under pressure from others. Of course, a testator doesn’t have to name a niece or nephew in the will just because that individual would have been entitled to an intestate share. The person challenging the will would have to establish by competent evidence that it is invalid (and that there’s no other valid will prior to it) in order to be able to assert a claim in intestacy.

In any case, a British Columbia estate planning lawyer can advise his or her clients further about what it means to leave people out of wills. The attorney will make sure a client’s rationale for leaving someone out is documented should the reasoning be needed later. Having a lawyer’s advice on such confusing issues will ensure a will adheres to the rules of law.

Estate administration: Keeping the peace among family members

Can certain people be left out of wills in British Columbia?

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