Difference between revisions of "Making and Executing a Will (16:III)"

The will-maker should appoint a person that is willing to act, familiar with the estate, young enough to outlive him or her, and preferably living in BC. An alternative Executor should also be appointed in case the first Executor is unavailable. The Executor, if he or she accepts the position, must carry out the duties of Executor. The Executor may renounce under s 104 of WESA, if he or she has not already intermeddled with the estate. In this scenario, the administration of the estate passes as if he or she had never been appointed Executor.

An Administrator is appointed by the court to administer the estate of a person who dies intestate (without a will). Section 130 of WESA provides the order of priority among applicants for administration of an intestate estate. An Administrator cannot act until the court grants Letters of Administration. An “administration with will annexed” may be granted where there is a will but the Executor named in the will cannot or will not act (e.g. due to refusal to act, incapacity, or death of the Executor). The order of priority for administration with will annexed is provided in section 131 of WESA. The Administrator’s legal capacity to act starts from the date of the granting of the Letters of Administration.

A personal representative is at a law a fiduciary and must act to the benefit of the estate and the beneficiaries. He or she cannot purchase from the estate unless he or she is given specific power to purchase in a will. He or she is accountable to the estate for any profit made while acting as Executor or Administrator.  If the personal representative makes mistakes and causes loss to the estate, unless the court finds that he or she acted honestly and reasonably, that person could be held personally liable and could be required to replace the loss.

A personal representative may be entitled to remuneration under a remuneration contract or pursuant to an express authority under the will. Otherwise, he or she is entitled to a fair and reasonable remuneration, not to exceed 5 percent of the gross aggregate value of the estate under s 88 of the ''Trustee Act'', RSBC 1996, c 464, and an annual care and management fee not exceeding 0.4 percent of the average market value of the assets. A personal representative may be a beneficiary under the will, though it is a rebuttable presumption that any benefit other than a residuary bequest under the will is in lieu of compensation: see ''Canada Permanent Trust Co v Guinn'', (1981) 32 BCLR 288 (SC).