Quebec

Quebec is a civil law jurisdiction and almost none of the vocabulary from the rest of Canada
applies. There is no executor — the person who settles the estate is the liquidator. There is no
estate — there is a succession. And "probate" means something much narrower than it does
elsewhere.

Which wills need probating

A notarial will is an authentic act. It does not need to be probated at all, because the notary
is a public officer and the will is already proof of itself. A holograph will, or a will made
before witnesses, must be probated (vérification) before it can be used — by a notary, or
by the Superior Court.

What probating proves

Only that the will is genuine and in valid form. The application needs the original will, an
attestation of death, proof of notice to the successors, and will search certificates from both
the Chambre des notaires du Québec and the Barreau du Québec. For a holograph will, someone who is
not named in it and knows the handwriting must swear to it; for a will before witnesses, the
witnesses give affidavits.

The inventory is not optional

The liquidator must make an inventory of the succession's property, register a notice of closure
of inventory in the RDPRM, and publish it in a newspaper circulating where the deceased last
lived. Heirs who exempt the liquidator from making an inventory, or who mix their own property with
the deceased's beforehand, can become liable for the deceased's debts beyond the value of what
they inherit.

Finishing

The liquidator renders a final account and publishes a notice of closure of the account in the
RDPRM; the mandate ends there. Clearance is needed from both Revenu Québec and the Canada Revenue
Agency before distributing.

The Civil Code of Québec recognises three forms of will, and the choice between them decides how
much work your liquidator faces later.

Notarial will

Made before a notary in the presence of a witness, and kept by the notary as an authentic act.
It is entered in the register of wills, so it can always be found, and it never needs probating.
It costs more up front and saves the succession both time and fees.

Holograph will

Written entirely in your own hand and signed by you. No witnesses. Valid — and it must be
probated after death, which requires a sworn declaration from someone not named in the will who can
identify your handwriting.

Will made before witnesses

Written (it may be typed), then signed by you in the presence of two witnesses who also sign.
Also valid, also requires probating, with affidavits from the witnesses.

What a will cannot override

Quebec does not have forced heirship for adult children, but a will does not reach everything. The
family patrimony and your matrimonial regime are settled before the succession, and a former
spouse or a dependent may claim support against the succession. Marriage no longer revokes a
will in Quebec, but divorce affects gifts to a former spouse — have the will reviewed.

Practical points

• Register it. Notarial wills are registered automatically; a holograph or witnessed will is only
  as findable as you make it. The mandatory searches are of the notaries' and Bar registers.
• Name a replacement liquidator, and say whether the liquidator is to be paid.
• If the liquidator is also an heir, say expressly whether they may charge — see the compensation
  topic. The default will probably surprise you.

Quebec's default rule is the opposite of the rest of Canada, and it catches families out constantly.

The rule

Under the Civil Code of Québec, a liquidator who is not an heir is entitled to remuneration. A
liquidator who is an heir acts gratuitously — unless the will provides for payment, or the
heirs agree to pay them.

Since the liquidator is very often the surviving spouse or a child, and therefore an heir, the usual
outcome is no fee at all unless somebody planned for it. The reasoning is that the heir is
already benefiting from the succession.

Who fixes the amount

If the testator set the remuneration, that governs. If not, it is fixed by the heirs; if they
cannot agree, by the court. There is no statutory percentage in Quebec, and no tariff to fall
back on — which is another reason to write the figure into the will.

Expenses are different

Whether or not the liquidator is paid, they are entitled to be reimbursed for the expenses of
carrying out the office. Being an unpaid heir-liquidator does not mean being out of pocket.

If you are writing a will

Say so explicitly. One sentence — that the liquidator is entitled to remuneration of a stated amount
or a stated basis, even if they are an heir — removes an argument that otherwise happens after you
are gone, between people who are grieving.

Tax

Remuneration is taxable income to the liquidator, in Quebec and federally. An inheritance is not.

A liquidator is reimbursed out of the succession for the expenses of carrying out the office. This
is true whether or not they are entitled to remuneration — an heir-liquidator acting gratuitously is
still not expected to fund the succession personally.

Normally claimable

• Funeral, burial or cremation, and a reception in proportion to the succession.
• The probating (vérification) of a non-notarial will, whether by notary or by the Superior
  Court, and notary's fees generally.
• Will search certificates from the Chambre des notaires du Québec and the Barreau du Québec.
• Registrations in the RDPRM — the notice of closure of inventory and the notice of closure of
  the final account — and the newspaper notice.
• The declaration of transmission for immovables, and Land Register fees.
• Valuations of immovables, vehicles, jewellery and collections.
• Accountants' fees, and preparation of the deceased's final Quebec and federal returns and any
  trust returns.
• Carrying costs on succession property until sale: insurance, municipal and school taxes, utilities,
  condominium fees, security, maintenance and snow removal.
• Cleaning, clearing, storing and moving contents; travel on succession business at a reasonable rate.

Normally not claimable

• The liquidator's lost income, meals near home, or personal costs.
• Costs incurred for one heir's convenience rather than the succession's benefit.
• Improvements to a property beyond preparing it for sale.
• Anything undocumented.

The rule that matters

Open a separate succession account and run everything through it. Never mingle your own property
with the deceased's — in Quebec that is not merely untidy bookkeeping, it is one of the acts that can
make an heir liable for the deceased's debts beyond what they inherit.

Most Quebec successions are liquidated by a family member, usually the spouse or a child. A
notary or a trust company acting as liquidator is worth the cost in particular cases.

Consider a professional when

• The will is holograph or made before witnesses, so it must be probated, searches obtained, and
  affidavits sworn — a notary does this routinely.
• The succession is solvent but complicated: an operating business, a farm, rental buildings, or
  assets outside Quebec.
• There is conflict among the heirs, or a support claim against the succession is likely.
• An heir is a minor or a protected person of full age, which brings the Curateur public into
  the picture and can mean a tutorship council.
• The liquidator would be resident outside Quebec, which creates tax problems and practical ones.
• The obvious candidate does not want the job — and in Quebec they may simply refuse the office,
  unless they are the sole heir.

What it costs

Notaries usually quote by the act or by the hour; trust companies quote a percentage, often with a
minimum that makes small successions uneconomic. Ask for it in writing before appointing anyone.

Middle options

• Appoint a family member as liquidator and let them mandate a notary to do the legal steps —
  probating, inventory, RDPRM notices, declaration of transmission — at the succession's expense.
  This is the common arrangement.
• Appoint two liquidators, one family and one professional.
• Name a replacement liquidator in case the first cannot act.

If you appoint a professional, remember they are not an heir, and so are entitled to be paid
by default.