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Ontario|Wills & EstatesWills 145 Probating an estate In some cases, a personal representative or executor must probate the will, which means to prove in court that the will meets all of the legal requirements. Under the law, this process is now officially called "applying for a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee with a Will".
Whether a will needs to be taken to court and "probated" will depend on the circumstances of each case. If the estate is small and not complicated, then a regular copy of the will may be sufficient to wrap up the affairs of the person who died. However, if the estate is large and complicated, or if people are challenging the will, then it will be necessary to probate the will to prove that it is valid and to establish the authority of the personal representative. For example, if you have a large number of investments, the bank may want to see a probated copy of the will so they know that the personal representative has the power to deal with your money.
Probating a will can be expensive. You pay $5 for every $1000 of assets in your estate up to $50,000, and then $15 on every $1000 of assets over $50,000. You should consult a lawyer for more information on how to probate a will. There can be a number of documents that need to be prepared, so it is a good idea to seek legal assistance.
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