Small Estate Provisions of Wills, Estates and Succession Act Not Coming Into Force

As I have written previously, British Columbia’s new Wills, Estates and Succession Act will come into force on March 31, 2014. This legislation overhauls B.C.’s succession laws.

But the provisions allowing for a simplified procedure for the administration of small estates are not coming into force on March 31, 2014. Sections 108 through 120 of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act set out a simplified procedure for executors or others who wish to administer a small estate to do so after giving notice to beneficiaries and others with an interest in the estate, and then filing a declaration with the court. If the estate is under a certain value (which would be set out by Regulation), a person could act as the deceased’s personal representative on the basis of the declaration and would not be required to apply for a grant of probate or letters of administration. The idea is to provide for a simpler and less costly procedure in cases where the value of the estate may not warrant the expense and complexity of an application for probate or letters of administration.

I don’t know whether these sections will come into force at a later date, or if they will come into force at all.