Guidance / End-to-End Administration
for Estate Trustees
Being named executor is an honour, but it also carries significant fiduciary obligations, statutory deadlines, and personal liability. Our Executor Support & Advisory service is designed for named executors who require practical, professional guidance on reviewing the will, understanding their duties, preparing for probate, tracking key deadlines, managing tax and estate administration requirements, organizing accounts, and assisting in making informed decisions throughout the administration.
- Review the will and identify your fiduciary obligations
- Locate, secure, and catalogue all estate assets
- Date-of-death valuations for all real and personal property
- Probate application preparation and court filing
- Undertake Estate Administration Tax calculation and payment coordination
- Ensure statutory deadline tracking (including the mandatory 90-day Estate Information Return)
- Deal with banks, financial institutions, investment firms, etc. and pay debts
- Organize accountants and real estate professionals, as necessary
- Ensure compliance with all CRA filings
- CRA clearance certificate coordination prior to final distribution
- Beneficiary communication and documented correspondence
- Executor compensation calculation per Ontario's tariff guidelines
- Prepare your estate accounting prior to court submission or beneficiary approval
- Draft all necessary Releases
Guidance / End-to-End Administration
when there is no valid will
When there is no valid will, the estate must be administered under Ontario's intestacy rules, which often requires identifying the proper beneficiaries, determining entitlement, and applying for authority to act. We guide clients through that process or step in where no family member/beneficiary is willing or able to do so, handling the appointment application, bond issues where required, asset administration, tax matters, and distribution in accordance with the statutory scheme.
- Determination of heirs and their entitlements under the Succession Law Reform Act
- Asset inventory and valuation
- Distribution to beneficiaries in strict statutory order
- Secure and manage vacant Ontario real estate and locate, secure and catalogue all estate assets
- Estate Trustee appointment application without a will — preparation and court filing
- Administration Bond coordination (often required for non-Ontario executors)
- Coordination with Ontario financial institutions and investment firms
- Undertake Estate Administration Tax calculation and payment coordination
- Ensure statutory deadline tracking (including the mandatory 90-day Estate Information Return)
- Dealing with banks and paying debts
- Organize accountants and real estate professionals, as necessary
- Ensure compliance with all CRA filings and cross-border tax considerations
- Regular reporting to the out-of-province executor at agreed intervals
- CRA clearance certificate coordination prior to final distribution
- Beneficiary communication and documented correspondence
- Executor compensation calculation per Ontario's tariff guidelines
- Prepare your estate accounting prior to court submission or beneficiary approval
- Draft all necessary Releases
Local presence
for distant families
Ontario estates often involve family members/beneficiaries who live outside the Province or outside Canada and cannot easily manage local court, property, tax, and banking requirements. We can act locally on their behalf, dealing with Ontario-specific procedural steps, securing assets such as vacant real estate, coordinating with financial institutions, addressing bonding and tax issues, and providing regular reporting so distant families remain informed without needing to be on the ground.
- Securing and managing vacant Ontario real estate
- Local court filings and correspondence with Ontario's Superior Court of Justice
- Administration Bond coordination (often required for non-Ontario executors)
- Coordination with Ontario financial institutions and investment firms
- CRA estate administration and cross-border tax considerations
- Regular reporting to the out-of-province executor at agreed intervals
Court-ready accounts with
every dollar documented
The Passing of Accounts is the formal financial record of the estate, setting out receipts, disbursements, investments, compensation, and proposed distributions in a format suitable for beneficiaries or the court. We compile and organize the estate ledger, prepare court-ready accounts in the required Ontario format, assist with releases and communication, and support estate trustees through contested or uncontested approval of their accounts.
- Full estate ledger compilation: all receipts and disbursements
- Executor compensation calculation per Ontario's tariff guidelines
- Preparation of accounts in Ontario Superior Court of Justice format
- Beneficiary communication and release documentation
- Court filing support for contested or formal Passing of Accounts
- CRA clearance certificate coordination prior to final distribution
Long-term trust
management
Long-term trusts require steady administration, careful record-keeping, ongoing tax compliance, and thoughtful decision-making over many years. We provide continuing trust administration that combines legal judgment with practical management, including investment and advisor coordination, beneficiary communications, discretionary distributions, annual accounting, and trust wind-up when the terms of the trust come to an end.
- Investment oversight and portfolio coordination
- Annual tax compliance — T3 trust returns, beneficiary T3 slips
- Beneficiary communications and discretionary distributions
- Detailed record keeping and annual trust accounting
- Discretionary decision-making guided by the trust deed
- Trust wind-up and final distribution when the trust terminates
- Full estate ledger compilation: all receipts and disbursements
- Preparation of accounts in Ontario Superior Court of Justice format
- Beneficiary communication and release documentation
- Court filing support for contested or formal Passing of Accounts
- CRA clearance certificate coordination prior to final distribution
Neutral administration during
active litigation
When an estate is tied up in litigation, the priority is to preserve assets, maintain neutrality, and keep the administration stable until the dispute is resolved. As Estate Trustee During Litigation (ETDL), we act under court authority to secure and manage estate property, maintain records, communicate impartially, respond to disclosure obligations, coordinate with litigation counsel, and protect the estate from mismanagement or unnecessary loss while the parties litigate their claims.
- Court-appointed administration of the estate pending resolution of litigation
- Securing and preserving estate assets during active legal proceedings
- Neutral, transparent Passing of Accounts for court review
- Beneficiary communication managed with documented impartiality
- Coordination with estate litigation counsel for all parties
- Preservation of estate value to protect final distribution to all beneficiaries
Independent Fiduciaries
In some estates and trusts, the right solution is for an experienced independent professional to assume the trustee role entirely. When appointed as sole trustee, we take full responsibility for securing assets, dealing with court requirements, administering property and investments, managing tax and debt obligations, keeping beneficiaries informed, and bringing the administration to an orderly conclusion with the degree of precision and neutrality expected in complex matters.
Discuss your situationProtecting rights where support
and spouse elections arise
Claims by dependants and elections by surviving spouses can affect the timing, administration, and ultimate distribution of an estate. We advise on dependant support claims under Ontario's Succession Law Reform Act and on surviving spouse elections under the Family Law Act, including the analysis of entitlements on a will or intestacy, the six-month election period for equalization claims by a surviving spouse, the impact on estate administration, and the steps needed to protect rights while preserving estate assets and complying with court and disclosure obligations.
- Assessment of dependant support rights and exposure under the Succession Law Reform Act
- Advice to surviving spouses on whether to take under the will or intestacy or elect for equalization under the Family Law Act
- Review of limitation periods, including the six-month timeline that commonly applies to spouse elections and dependant support claims
- Financial disclosure, valuation, and entitlement analysis for support and equalization issues
- Guidance to estate trustees on preserving assets, managing distributions, and responding to claims without creating unnecessary risk
- Where court proceedings are required, acting as family law counsel or estate litigation counsel
Advancing or defending claims where
the validity of a will is in issue
Challenges to the validity of a will — whether based on suspicious circumstances, lack of testamentary capacity, or undue influence — are among the most consequential and sensitive disputes in estate law. We act for those seeking to challenge a will and for estate trustees and beneficiaries defending one, providing rigorous case assessment, evidence gathering, and representation through negotiation, mediation, and court proceedings. Our goal is to protect our clients' rights and reach a principled resolution as efficiently as possible.
- Advice on suspicious circumstances, including abrupt changes to testamentary intentions, beneficiary involvement in the drafting process, isolation, dependency, or unusual execution circumstances
- Analysis of testamentary capacity issues, including the evidence needed to assess whether the deceased understood the nature and effect of the will, the extent of their property, and the claims of those who might expect to benefit
- Advice on undue influence allegations, including whether pressure, manipulation, or domination may have displaced the deceased's free will
- Review of solicitor's files, medical evidence, witness evidence, and surrounding records relevant to proving or resisting the claim
- Representation in negotiations, mediation, and court proceedings to preserve rights and seek an efficient resolution where possible
- Strategic guidance to estate trustees on how to remain neutral, protect estate assets, and respond appropriately when the validity of a will is challenged
- Early case assessment on standing, evidence, and the legal basis for a will challenge or defence
Transparent, Practical and Cost-Conscious Billing
We bill on an hourly basis for the time actually spent on your matter — so you can see clearly how the work is being performed and costed. Here is how that approach applies across the roles we take on.
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