Contested estates are Supreme Court business. Richmond’s courthouse at 7577 Elmbridge Way sits as the Provincial Court, which has no say over wills: for estate purposes the Wills, Estates and Succession Act (WESA) gives the word “court” a single meaning, the Supreme Court. The nearest Supreme Court registry is the Vancouver Law Courts at 800 Smithe Street, about 16 km from Richmond City Hall; a claim names its place of trial, which the court can later change.
There are three main routes, and each has its own timing.
Before probate is granted: the notice of dispute
Two kinds of people may lodge a notice of dispute (Form P29): those who must be sent the executor’s Form P1 notice, and those relying on a different will. It must be in before the grant, and while it stands the registrar cannot grant probate, which buys time to look into how the will was made. Each person gets one per estate. It runs out a year after filing unless a judge renews it, and a judge can strike it out if it does not serve the estate’s best interests. A notice of dispute holds the position; it does not decide anything, so it is followed by a court application if the dispute continues.
A will that does not provide adequately: wills variation
A spouse or child who was left without proper maintenance and support can ask the court, under WESA section 60, to rewrite the will; the judge orders whatever is “adequate, just and equitable” in the circumstances. Grown children are not excluded, since the section sets no age limit. Section 61 is unforgiving on time. Count 180 days from the date the BC grant issues: the action has to be filed inside that window, and the executor served no more than 30 days after it closes, unless a judge gives more time to serve. Minor children, or a spouse or child who is mentally incapable, bring in the Public Guardian and Trustee, who must be served too. See disinherited child, disinherited spouse and the wills variation limitation period.
For this purpose a common-law partner counts as a spouse after two years living in a marriage-like relationship. Under section 2, separation before the death can end that status, for married and unmarried couples alike.
A will that should not stand: validity
The grounds are a will-maker who did not understand what they were doing, pressure that overbore their free choice, or a signing that did not follow WESA’s formalities. Pressure cases have a statutory shortcut. Section 52 says that once the challenger proves a relationship in which the will-maker could have been dependent on, or dominated by, the other person, it is for the will’s supporters to disprove undue influence. Formal defects are less fatal than they once were: section 58 lets a judge uphold a document that genuinely records what the deceased intended. Our pages on capacity and undue influence, will disputes and evidence needed to contest a will.
Disputes outside those three routes, such as a challenge to a gift made before death, carry limitation periods that turn on the claim, which is one more reason to see a lawyer before probate. Candace Cho, KC heads our estate litigation group. The firm takes estate litigation at hourly rates and, where the lawyer agrees, on a contingency fee (payment options); how much it costs to contest a will gives a fuller picture.
First steps if you think a will is wrong
- Get a copy of the will. If someone applies for probate, the will goes out with the Form P1 notice to the beneficiaries and others entitled to it.
- Write down the date the grant issues, if it has; the 180-day period for a variation claim runs from it, not from the death.
- Note who helped the will-maker with the will, who was present, and any change in the will-maker’s health or living arrangements around the time it was signed.
- Find out whether earlier wills exist; a lawyer’s file or a wills notice search can show where a will was kept.
- Keep emails, texts and letters from the will-maker about their plans. Do not wait for the executor to finish the estate before taking advice.
If you are the executor facing a claim
A claim does not end the executor’s job; it changes how it is done. Section 155 of WESA forbids distributing the estate for 210 days after the grant unless a judge orders it or the required people consent: every beneficiary with an interest plus every potential variation claimant where there is a will, or every intestate heir with a share where there is not. An executor who pays out while a claim is pending may be left answerable for it, so keep the estate intact and take advice before any interim payment. Section 142 requires the executor to account to the beneficiaries; our articles on how long an executor can withhold money and interim distributions during a wills variation claim explain the balance. An executor blocked by a notice of dispute is not stuck. Rule 25-10 lets anyone interested in the estate, including the would-be executor, apply on notice to have it removed where keeping it is not in the estate’s best interests, and a notice also ends if the will is proved in solemn form, a court process in which the will’s validity is decided on evidence. Which route fits depends on the grounds the disputant has given, and those are stated in the notice itself.
If an executor will not act or communicate, beneficiaries can apply under section 158 to have them removed; see challenging an executor.
Probate for a Richmond estate
Provincial guidance leaves the registry to the applicant: probate or administration can be sought at any Supreme Court registry. A Richmond executor might use Smithe Street in Vancouver or the New Westminster Law Courts (about 23 km from City Hall by road), among others. Part 25 of the Supreme Court Civil Rules sets the same sequence everywhere:
- Ask Vital Statistics for a wills notice search ($20). Richmond has no Service BC centre and the Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey ones do not take these requests, so post it to Victoria. Allow up to 20 business days for printing, or pay $33 extra to have it printed the next business day and couriered.
- Send Form P1, with a copy of the will, to co-executors and beneficiaries (or, with no will, the intestate heirs). The Public Guardian and Trustee is added where a minor or a person who is or may be mentally incompetent is entitled. The form states which registry will be used.
- Wait at least 21 days, then submit the application and the sworn statement of assets and liabilities.
- Pay the Probate Fee Act charge, which is zero up to $25,000 and rises by the thousand above that; our probate fee calculator works it out.
Documents in another language
If the will, or any other document filed with the application, is not written in English, Rule 25-3 requires an affidavit of translator (Form P12) to be filed with it. A will written in Chinese or another language can be probated in BC, but the translation has to be sworn, and the translator’s affidavit is filed at the same time as the document it translates. A will written in another language is a document question, not a reason to doubt the will.
Veronica Manski runs our probate and administration group, which prepares grant applications. See also how to probate a will in BC.
Our estate lawyers
Onyx Law Group’s two principals joined forces in 2012; one of them, Candace Cho, KC, leads the estate litigation practice, Veronica Manski leads probate and administration, and Sandy Minh Abley (who also speaks Vietnamese) leads planning. Litigation associates on Richmond files include Julia Pinnock, Jesse Patrao, Kevin Campbell (French), Katya Richardson, Jackson Todd, Valerie LeBlanc, Louisa Ledesma (Tagalog and conversational Mandarin), and TJ Garcha (Punjabi). Language ability varies by lawyer; ask when you book if you need a particular language, and use a certified translator for sworn documents. The full list is on our team page. For a separation, see our Richmond family lawyers.
Common questions
Can a will dispute be filed at the Richmond courthouse?
No. Richmond’s courthouse is a Provincial Court. Estate claims belong to the Supreme Court, whose nearest registry is the Vancouver Law Courts.
How long do I have to challenge a will in BC?
A wills variation claim must be started within 180 days after the BC grant of probate. Other challenges have their own limits, and a notice of dispute must be filed before the grant issues, so speak to a lawyer early.
Can a will written in Chinese be probated?
Yes. Any document not in English is filed with an affidavit of translator in Form P12. Whether a will made outside BC is formally valid needs case-by-case advice.
Where do Richmond clients meet you?
At our Kerrisdale office, Suite 201, 5455 West Boulevard, just across the Oak Street Bridge. Phone and video meetings are available for anyone who prefers not to travel.
Do I pay for the first meeting?
Not for the first half-hour on a contested estate, whether in Kerrisdale, by phone or by video. Probate and planning enquiries: ask about the cost when you book on (604) 900-2538 or via the contact page.
