Estate trustees, attorneys for property, guardians of property and trustees of a trust (collectively referred to here as “fiduciaries”) are all obligated to keep detailed records, or accounts, of their management of assets. Fiduciaries can be compelled to pass accounts by those with an interest in the trust property or by those with a close […]
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A beneficiary or person with standing can compel an estate trustee/executor, attorney for property for an incapable person (aka “POA”), trustee of a trust, or guardian of property to pass his or her accounts in court. A passing of accounts is like a court audit of the trustee’s accounts. Sometimes, a court application to pass accounts is initiated by the trustee and sometimes it is initiated by a beneficiary or another person with standing to challenge the accounts. The beneficiaries of an estate have a right to know the extent of the estate’s original assets and liabilities, and to review all payments made and received by the estate trustee.
Furthermore, the beneficiaries have the right to object formally to any transaction that they consider suspicious, demand further information and documentation, and/or object to the amount of compensation claimed by the estate trustee. If the beneficiaries’ objections are not answered to their satisfaction, a hearing is held before a judge who will decide the matter and ultimately pass the accounts. A passing of accounts can be complicated and hard fought. de VRIES LITIGATION can help fiduciaries at every stage of their role – providing advice about how to fulfill their duties, putting accounts into court passing form, responding to objections, and, if necessary, representing the interests of the fiduciary in court. We can also help beneficiaries to hold fiduciaries accountable for their handling of estate assets.
Related papers/blog
Passing of Accounts: A Math Problem Explained
In a recent blog post entitled “Things Lawyers Know,” I laughed out loud when I read #13: “Lawyers are word, not number people. If their fee went up 10%, few lawyers would know how much extra they received.” Math often comes into play in an estates litigation practice, particularly in the context of a contested passing of […]
read moreIn the Absence of Accounting Records, What are the Options?
The Ontario Court of Appeal in Pirani v Esmail was asked to determine the appropriate way to determine the quantum of damages when no accounting records are available. In a 2-1 decision, the majority held that the expert’s reconstruction of accounts was not reliable given the near absence of accounting records. However, the dissenting judge […]
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