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Saturday, June 5, 2010

What is "resealing" probate?


"Resealing" is the process of having the local provincial or territorial court confirm a Grant of Probate from another jurisdiction. Usually when a person passes away, the Grant of Probate that is obtained from the court is sufficient to deal with all of the assets the person owns. However, when there is real property (land, house, cottage, mineral rights, etc) in another province or territory, or assets of any kind in Commonwealth countries, the Grant of Probate is not enough.

For example, a Grant of Probate from Alberta is not sufficient to transfer land in Ontario. The Alberta Grant of Probate would have to be resealed in Ontario.

I've had to obtain resealed Grants in England, Scotland and Isle of Jersey and in each case it was time-consuming but went smoothly. It's not something you would try to do without legal assistance.

The process is very similar to applying for the original Grant of Probate. It can't be exactly the same, because the original Will is not available, having already been submitted to the first court. The other difference is that the first Grant of Probate would have included a detailed inventory of all kinds of assets and debts. The resealing application will only address the real property (and any related debts etc) that is in the new jurisdiction. This means that the probate/resealing court fee is usually significantly smaller than the original application.

Canadian courts will reseal Grants of Probate from all Canadian provinces and territories, as well as all Commonwealth countries. Commonwealth countries will reseal a Grant of Probate from Canada.

4 comments:

  1. If any of your readers require Canadian Grant of probate resealed in the UK, we offer a specialist service at www.reasealingprobate.co.uk

    ReplyDelete
  2. What is the process for USA Residence. I inherited a retirement account that did not have a beneficiary name listed (so the Estate is the beneficiary). The Estate Department of the Financial Institute told me that I need to RESEAL the Will. Your summary speaks only of resealing between different Canadian provinces and between Common Health Countries, but only mention real property (i.e., real estate).
    Please advise, thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  3. My Aunt died on Feb 25,2018, leaving my cousin as trustee, we have not received the cash dollar amounts of the shares(2) one share goes to my cousin and other share gets split 9 ways. Again sealing and resealing is mentioned extensively with respect to any details. Will has been through probate and supreme court of Canada. My cousin said there is 270,000 dollars available ,but I do not have this on paper from the lawyer. My Aunt had GIC's, mutual funds,stocks and bonds,and I believe a life insurance policy. I am a residual beneficiary named on her will. Do I have the right to know the details of my Aunt's net worth in it's entirety? My aunt's diamond engagement ring was promised to my sister Marilyn and my cousin gave it to her son David. Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I assume you are one of the people splitting a share 9 ways. If so, yes you are a residuary beneficiary and yes you have the right to see a full accounting of all transactions on the estate. This includes bank transactions of course, but also things like the gift of the diamond ring.

      Lynne

      Delete

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