Getting Your Document Ducks in a Row

From the Cambridge Dictionary https://dictionary.cambridge.org/ Get/have your ducks in a row: to be

well prepared or well organized for something that is going to happen.

There is no shame in the very natural avoidance of planning for the In Canada, laws that govern estate and personal planning are unique to each province. inevitable times when each one of us will first need assistance, to happen.” The passage of time and then a substitute with legal unexpected events will necessitate a return to estate planning several times authority, and ultimately in most lives. For example, when someone to finally wind up our children become adults, and marital situations change, a review is always worldly affairs. appropriate. In Canada, laws that govern estate and personal planning are unique to each province. Avoid advice from that slick Arizona website that has discovered a really, really excellent way to avoid creditors and taxes…! How? You will usually be asked to complete a questionnaire that serves to gather the factual details of your life situation and assets. That is an excellent time to collect and confirm important documents and information, including

What else are you buying when the details of your financial accounts you use the services of a BC Notary and important assets such as real or lawyer to prepare your estate estate and other valuable property. documents? It is a good time to verify the beneficiary • You expect professional advice designations on insurance policies and service when you take the as well as RIF and RRSP accounts. steps to prepare a Will and related It is very common that this process documents. turns up errors that need correction • You are also “buying” the and changes that need to be made. credibility of the documents when You almost certainly will have they eventually need to be used, questions for your Notary, who can and you cannot speak for yourself. guide you through the process. When? The Notary will do necessary land title searches to confirm, among other A proverb found in several cultures things, the names used. Frequently comes to mind. “When is the best time this turns up information that needs to plant an Oak tree? Thirty years ago. to be referenced in the estate planning When is the second-best time? Today.” documents or corrected. Surprisingly,

I can assure you from my own Notaries often find mortgages on experience, and what I hear from our properties that clients thought had Notaries Public, that clients report been paid out or that they never even finding significant peace of mind knew about. when they are supported through the In an in-person interview—or process of preparing for what is “going perhaps, “in these times” via Zoom—

Ron Usher

the information you have collected will be reviewed, and the necessary choices will be made. Clients are sometimes very reluctant to share and review the details of their assets and family structure. It is essential for that information to be discussed for two reasons. • If you do not know the “nature and extent” of your assets, you may not have the legal capacity to make a Will. That you do have capacity needs to be documented, as Court challenges to Wills based on an allegation of lack of capacity are becoming very common. • Details of assets are needed to ensure they will pass appropriately to your heirs.

For a Will you will need to make a number of important choices—most important, the selection of executors and the designation of beneficiaries. The same people will likely be named as you turn your mind to creating other important documents such as a Representation Agreement and a Power of Attorney. The Notary will guide you through the options and choices you need to make.

In BC, a “Wills Notice” can be filed with the Vital Statistics office. The form gives the details of when a Will was made and where it will be located. A search of the registry is mandatory at the time of application for Probate. The small fee charged may save your estate a very large amount of time and money. s Ron Usher is General Counsel and a Practice Advisor for The Society of Notaries Public of BC.