Acting as an executor can be a stressful, time consuming commitment that carries real liability. It has been estimated that the job of an executor can take, on average, 160 hours of work. We say that executors should:
a) have the interests of your beneficiaries’ front and centre,
b) be geographically close,
c) have financial competence and
d) have available time.
Sometimes I feel that we casually name people as our executor without realizing that we are handing over an onerous task. Do we automatically choose our spouse? Or eldest child? Are they the really the right individual? I recently went through an experience where a divorced mother passed away and named her 30-year-old daughter the executor – the eldest child. While she was a smart person, she was a beginner when it came to the tax protocol around estates, unfamiliar with investment and tax slips and unaware of many of the financial relationships her mother had had. It was a stress on the young mother of two and put a rift between herself and her brother who had been named as 50% beneficiary but did not share in the executor duties.
What to do? I believe people should consider bringing in support to help them through the process of being an executor. I have started referring people to Legacy Private Trust to perform such a task. Legacy Private Trust is Toronto based, but with Canadian reach, trust company that can act as executor, co-executor or be hired as supporting experts by the executor. Having a team of lawyers, accountants and account people to support you can help take some of the burden and stress away. Let me know if you would like to know more about Legacy Trust.
