Following an announcement by the provincial government this past
February, on April 1, 2021 Ontario's new procedure to
administer small estates came into effect. The new
procedures, which are designed to ease the administration process
on "Small Estates" are welcomed and should
facilitate a cost effective and timely probate on modest
estates.
Under The Smarter and Stronger Justice Act,1 amendments were made to The
Estates Act2, one of which
was the introduction of the "Small Estate." A Small
Estate is an estate with a value of $150,000 or less. The new and
simpler procedures for Small Estate administration include the
following:
-
completing the new and simpler application forms;3