Wills, Estates & Succession Act
The Canadian province of British Columbia passed the Wills, Estates and Succession Act in 2009. The law, which takes effect in 2011, amends multiple previous laws on wills and inheritance and updates and streamlines probate procedures for smaller estates. If you wrote a will under the previous laws, it's still valid, but the way some provisions are interpreted might change.
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Background
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The Wills, Estates and Succession Act is the first overhaul of succession laws in British Columbia in 90 years. It replaces several laws, such as the Estate Administration Act, Probate Recognition Act, Wills Act and Wills Variation Act, some of which date back to 1837. The purpose is not only to modernize the laws, but to consolidate them into a single act to make it easier to refer to and research.
Wills
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To simplify probate, even wills that predate this act will be interpreted under the guidelines of the new law, but no one has to write a new will. The law makes it easier for courts to correct errors in wills without invalidating the documents, allows you to make a will once you turn 16 and states that getting married no longer automatically invalidates a premarital will. If spouses or children raise a "will variation" challenge -- a claim that the will doesn't adequately provide for them -- the act changes the procedure slightly.
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Gifts and Deeds
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Before the act, if you gave one of your heirs a gift during his lifetime, the value might have been deducted from his inheritance; under the new law, the British Columbia Attorney General states, that will only occur if you say so in the will. Debts will also be treated differently: The old rules said that the estate's debts would be paid first out of personal-property bequests such as cars or jewelry, not real estate. Under the new rule, personal and real property are equally vulnerable.
Probate
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The act doubles the value of estates that don't have to complete a formal probate process, from $25,000 to $50,000. If the deceased dies without making a will, the act changes how the estate will be distributed among her relatives, in order to divide the property more fairly. If the deceased left a spouse and children, the spouse receives $300,000 if the children are his, $150,000 if the children are from another relationship.
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References
- The Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia; The New Wills, Estates and Succession Act; October 2010
- Martindale.com; Wills, Estates and Succession Act: Changes Coming; Alana Dale-Johnson and Mark S. Thompson; August 2010
- British Columbia Ministry of Attorney General: Questions and Answers
