By Kate Proctor

One of my on-going life lessons is that most headaches are caused by the things you don’t know that you don’t know. One of those things for me lately has been about sorting out the role of executor. I can feel your eyes glazing over already – but stick with me. It could save you some headaches.
Before we get into the meat of this,  be aware that I am writing as someone with no formal legal training. I am just a regular person who has worked through some of it and come up against some hard lessons. Perhaps the first being that it is tough to find consistent answers when you are trying to sort this out. 
I have written here before about the importance of having a will, keeping it up to date, and properly naming Powers of Attorney (POA) for Personal Care and Property, as well as executors. Even sorting out all of this is an important first step. While most people know the importance of having a will, following through on those other steps is also vital.  
The moment someone passes away, the POA documents become void, and the person with the position of executor, also known as “estate trustee”, takes over. The primary duty of the executor is to ensure that the directions outlined in the will are carried out in accordance with the law. I have had people try to tell me that the executor has the duty to ensure that the assets are distributed “fairly”, which is not the case. The executor gets the directions from the will and carries them out. 
As defined by the Ontario government, “Estate trustees are responsible for carrying out the wishes of the deceased person set out in the terms of the will (if there is one) and administering an estate in accordance with the law. A person named as an estate trustee in a will is not required to act as the estate trustee. If they decide to act, they are responsible for winding up the affairs of the deceased, paying taxes, bills and any other debts, and collecting the estate assets and distributing the residue of the estate to those who are entitled to it (for example, the remainder after all liabilities are paid)”, https://www.ontario.ca/ page/administering-estates.
I think one of the most important pieces of that paragraph is that, like the people named as the POA for Personal Care and Finance, the executor has a choice about whether to accept the role or not. This is why it is vital, as the person choosing people for these roles, that you communicate and keep up to date on personal changes so that you know the people you have entrusted in these roles are willing and able to carry them out. As the person being named in these roles, you can say no if you are unwilling or unable to perform the duties as required. As with everything in life dealing with other people – good communication is vital. 
The second thing I would highlight from that paragraph is how one little sentence can look so innocent yet turn into something so overwhelming. “Winding up the affairs of the deceased.” It is hard to know where to even start with that one! 
“Winding up the affairs”, at least the financial ones, involves following the money. Where does it come from? Where is it going? Where does it stop in between? In these days of digital information – it can be more difficult to find out these answers than it was in the past. For example, the bank accounts of the deceased will be frozen as soon as the bank receives the Death Certificate and, depending on your bank, it can be very difficult to gain information. Without paper statements and account numbers, looking these up online can be impossible for an executor. Help your executor out by having a list of all account numbers, where they are held, paper statements, and contact information. 
One idea is to name the person that you trust in the role of POA and executor as joint in your bank accounts. While this makes things easier should you not be able to do your own banking, or die, it brings with it the complication that your bank accounts are included in the other person’s list of assets should they go through a divorce or die themselves. It gets complicated in a hurry. 
It is impossible to talk about assets without talking about probate. Again, a very small word for something that can turn overwhelming in a hurry. In my experience, even trying to get a definition for “probate” can result in several different answers, depending on who you ask. I have learned that lots of people will tell you, with great confidence, what it is, but many of these people do not actually know. I got many different answers and, in the end, had to make sure that I had all the information and followed up with it. I think I finally understand it – but check in with me in a year and see if I actually do. 
In order to save yourself some trouble,  you can set yourself up on Revenue Canada’s “Represent a Client” page. This helped a lot as I was able to access government tax documents as well as set up our accountant so they could also digitally access the account.  Happily, the people I talked to at Revenue Canada were some of the most helpful people throughout this whole process. 
All of this information is not that helpful after the fact. If you have someone you trust named in these roles, please make their lives easier, and give less of your hard-earned money away, by having your paperwork organized, communicate with your trusted person, and make sure they have the notarized paperwork they need to make sure your wishes are followed. ◊