Probate without a will · British Columbia
Probate when there is no will: estate administration in Abbotsford, Surrey and Vancouver
When someone dies without a will in BC, no one has automatic authority over the estate. A family member applies to the Supreme Court of British Columbia for a grant of administration (often called letters of administration), and the estate is shared under fixed rules in the Wills, Estates and Succession Act. We guide administrators and families through each step.
- Applying for a grant of administration
- Who inherits when there is no will
- Spouses, children and the family home
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Planning to sell or share out assets? Without a grant, no one has legal authority to deal with most estate assets. If the deceased left a spouse, the family home generally cannot be sold for 180 days after the grant without the spouse’s written consent.
The Act sets out who receives the estate. The most common situations:
- A spouse and no children or grandchildren: the spouse receives everything.
- A spouse and children who are all the spouse’s children too: the spouse receives the household furnishings, the first $300,000 and half of the rest. The children share the other half.
- A spouse and at least one child who is not the spouse’s child: the spouse receives the household furnishings, the first $150,000 and half of the rest.
- No spouse: the estate goes to the children, with grandchildren taking the place of a child who has died; then to parents; then to brothers and sisters and their children; then to more distant relatives.
Stepchildren and friends do not inherit when there is no will, and a common-law partner counts as a spouse only after two years of living together in a marriage-like relationship.
When the deceased left a spouse, the Act gives the spouse special rights over the family home:
- The spouse can choose to buy the home from the estate, using their share toward the price.
- The administrator must tell the spouse about this right when applying for the grant.
- The spouse generally has 180 days after the grant to give written notice, and the court can extend this.
These rules affect when and how other family members receive their share, so it helps to plan any sale or transfer early.
- Confirm who can applyWe confirm who has priority, gather consents from other family members and check whether a will exists, including a wills notice search.
- Send noticeWe prepare and deliver the 21-day notice to everyone who inherits and, where needed, to creditors.
- Apply for the grantWe prepare the court application, affidavits and statement of assets, and calculate the probate fees.
- Administer and distributeOnce the grant issues, we help collect assets, pay debts and taxes, and distribute the estate as the Act requires.
Questions about estates without a will
Many people call it probate, but the court document is a grant of administration, and the person in charge is an administrator rather than an executor. The court process and the probate fees are similar.
Yes, if you lived together in a marriage-like relationship for at least two years and the relationship had not ended before the death. A partner who qualifies is treated as a spouse.
Sometimes. Assets held jointly or with a named beneficiary pass outside the estate, and some institutions release small accounts without a grant. Land in the deceased’s sole name almost always needs one.
When there is no will, the shares are fixed by law and a wills variation claim is not available. Disputes are usually about who should be administrator, the value of assets, or the spouse’s rights to the home.
If the named executor has died, renounced or will not act, a beneficiary can apply for administration with the will annexed (section 131). The will still decides who inherits.
Official sources: Wills, Estates and Succession Act, sections 20–33 and 130Supreme Court Civil Rules, Part 25 (estate applications)
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Probate without a will help in Abbotsford, Surrey and Vancouver
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Someone died without a will?
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