Originally Posted by
Gman.45
As I said, my mother already passed away, after we had said wills created, so one of the wills has already been executed and everything worked out correctly. Obviously you need an executor, and that was appointed in the will(s). I'm not quite sure what you're referring to as the issues to be concerned over, a will obviously should have all facets covered, that's the entire point of having a lawyer create one, it isn't just a few lines of "I hereby bequeath so and so all my shit, the end". If probate is what you're referring to, if required there are fixed costs to this, and it certainly wouldn't have been much $ in the grand scheme of things in my case. Most assets can be transferred to named beneficiaries through operation of law. Again, in my case, the land was already registered jointly - my mother's PRIF/RRIF/whatever, her bank accounts, and life insurance policy were all paid or transferred as the case may have been to my name in pretty short order.
edit - Missus corrects me and says that each will was $500, not $500 total for all 3 of them, so $1500 is in the ball park- ish for a Calgary vs SK legal fee. Well, maybe in the parking lot of the ball park, but closer in costs at least, and this was in 2017, 4 years ago now.
Rocket, a trustee/executor is merely someone you appoint to take charge of your estate, both assets and debts, who will be responsible for distributing your assets as you've directed in your will, as well as ensure any debts and outstanding bills you have are cleared up. They'll also be responsible for filing your final tax return with the CRA. If you're married and have children as you've said, IMO spending the $ on a lawyer is probably worth it, unless you simply can't afford it. You'll need to ensure all potential scenarios are covered, and legal help is important with regards to ensuring your children are provided for. Your trustee, unless a lawyer/tax expert/etc themselves, will likely have to seek legal help AS your trustee, so they don't have to be an "expert", just someone that you "trust" (get it).
As an example from my case why having a lawyer may be beneficial - my mother was certain that all her investments through her investment firm had me listed as heir, but our lawyer found 2 of the mutual funds hadn't been xfered to my name from when my folks divorced and my father was still listed as her heir on the funds. IE even IF she had listed me as her heir in the will, it could have been a fight/gong show had my father decided to contest those 2 funds which had been missed by the "pros" at the investment firm, but caught by our lawyer. There are so many little details, so if you do decide to spend the $ on a lawyer, do your best to ensure that he/she is experienced. There has got to be some good recommendations in Calgary from the lawyers who are members on Beyond...