Estates Administration
Discover Skilled and Thoughtful GuidanceActing as Estate Trustee can be challenging. It is important that the Estate Trustee understands their role, responsibilities, obligations and timelines involved in administering the Estate to insulate them from disputes, criticism and possible liability.
The lawyers at Dickson Appell LLP have the experience, expertise and empathy to advise and assist the client on the myriad of issues involved in administering an Estate including:
locating the original Will and reviewing it with the Estate Trustee;
- if there was no Will or a Will cannot be found, advising on who are the next-of-kin beneficiaries entitled to the intestate Estate and who has priority to be appointed Estate Trustee by the court
- identifying the deceased person’s assets, debts, and liabilities
- determining whether an application to the Estates Court for a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee is required, and preparing the application
- notifying the beneficiaries of their entitlement
- determining whether notice must be given to other parties such as the Office of the Children’s Lawyer
- advising on the preparation and filing of all tax returns.
Following receipt of the Certificate of Appointment:
- preparing and filing the Estate Information Return
- advising/assisting the Estate Trustee to take possession of and/or liquidate the Estate assets
- preparing accounts for the Estate and any Trusts
- advising the Estate Trustee on the timing and amount of interim and final distributions
- preparing and sending the appropriate Releases to the Beneficiaries
- coordinating the application to CRA for a Clearance Certificate, and once received, making the final distribution to the beneficiaries.
Deborah focuses her practice on estates planning and administration law exclusively. On the estate planning side, Deborah provides advice and services to individuals and couples from all walks of life on a broad range of issues such as personal estate, tax, and incapacity planning, including review and preparation of wills, powers of attorney, and personal/family trusts and transfers of title. On the estates administration side, Deborah advises both individual and institutional executors, and attorneys for property, on their role and responsibilities and advises beneficiaries on their entitlements and advocates for them regarding same in non-litigious contexts.
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