Who Qualifies to Vary a Will Under BC’s WESA?

Section 60 of WESA lets a spouse or any child, adopted or natural, apply to vary a will. Stepchildren, friends, nieces and caregivers have no standing to bring a wills variation claim. A lot of disputes turn on whether an unmarried partner counts as a spouse.

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• Who Can Contest a Will in British Columbia?

Full transcript

What does the Wills, Estates and Succession Act say about who qualifies? So, section 60 of the wills variation cases provides that adult children, any children or spouse can contest a will. Oftentimes, what people litigate over is whether or not a spouse is truly a spouse under the definition of a spouse. If they’re not married, then there is a lot of gray area as to whether or not somebody is going to be found as a spouse who has a marriage-like relationship with the will-maker. For children, adopted children have standing as well as natural children, but stepchildren do not have a right to contest the will. So, why can’t a friend, a niece or a caregiver bring a wills variation claim? They don’t have standing. Just under the statute, they don’t have standing to vary a will.

General information, not legal advice.