Helping With Letters of Administration and Probate
Losing a loved one is hard enough, not to mention all of the paperwork and bureaucracy involved in dealing with the Government of British Columbia. At Winright Law, we want to take that stress off your shoulders by helping you to navigate the estate administration process, which can sometimes include letters of administration or probate.
Whether you are the executor of the will, or if you are trying to figure out what to do when there is no will, our probate lawyers here in Vancouver are ready to help, and go through all the steps to probate a will with you.
What to do when you are the executor of a will – Probate
As an executor, you are expected to administer the estate as instructed by the terms of the will. This might involve making difficult decisions with respect to the deceased’s property, investments, debts, and other personal items.
Before you can actually manage the property, you first need a grant of probate. This can be obtained by applying to the BC Supreme Court, who will give you the legal power to manage the assets and debts of the deceased’s estate within the terms of the will.
What to do when there is no will – Letters of Administration
When someone passes away before they have a chance to make a will, it is still possible to step in and manage their assets. Certain people can apply to the BC Government for a grant of administration with letters of administration, and if that gets approved, it would allow the person receiving the grant to manage and administer the assets and debts. In BC, priority goes to the spouse, then a child of the deceased (approved by a majority of the other children, if there is any), then a person nominated by a majority of the deceased’s children, and so on.
When someone applies for a grant of administration, they are required to notify others who might have a claim to any part of the inheritance – this is to make sure that no one is being taken advantage of.
The person who receives the grant of administration is also required to split the assets in a particular way as set out by BC laws. For example, the deceased’s spouse gets priority over the family home, furniture, and the first $300,000 of the estate. If there is no spouse, then the estate is divided between the children.
There are many, many more rules and nuances to estate administration and probate a will. If you find yourself in the unfortunate position of figuring out what to do after a loved one passes away, Winright is here to guide you through it.
Contact us today at 604-559-2529 or email us at [email protected], and we will answer any questions you might have during your initial consultation.