Fee for acting under a Living Will? And can I ignore funeral instructions?

The role of the executor is challenging, there is no question about that. I know that many of you reading this blog are executors looking for practical information about how to deal with the estate you're working on. The following question (which is really two questions) came in from a reader in exactly that situation, so I'm sharing it with you in case you're in a similar spot.

Here's the question:

"Can an executor charge fees before the person passes away if that person is in charge of the living will. Also does the executor have to follow the will to the tee for the funeral arrangements?"

 

First of all, a person whose authority comes from a will can't do anything with that will, including taking a fee, while the testator (the person whose will it is) is alive.

 

When you talk about the Living Will, I am going to assume that you're actually talking about a type of health care directive or advance directive. These directives usually include the kind of end-of-life instructions you see in a Living Will, but they also do much more. They usually appoint someone to make decisions, and as you say you are "in charge of" the document, this sounds more like what you are dealing with.

 

The law in Canada generally does not allow a person acting under a health care directive to charge a fee. You can, however, usually recover reasonable expenses. Please understand that this has absolutely nothing to do with the will. You have to follow the law as it applies to the health care directive, which varies from province to province.

 

As for your second question, the executor doesn't have to follow the will to a tee regarding the funeral. In fact, legally the executor can totally ignore what the will says about the funeral, because the funeral wishes in a will are a wish only. They are not legally binding. The law says that if the executor has the legal responsibility to dispose of the body, then he or she must have the legal right to decide the best way to do that.

 

Please keep in mind the emotional fall-out that can happen if you decide not to follow the will. It may upset people, to put it mildly. Consider what damage will be done to family harmony, and think about how you will deal with this. I'm not saying that you can't do the funeral the way you think best; I'm saying you may have to gently explain to family members why you made a different decision.

 

I'm glad you decided to ask for input before taking these steps. Sometimes just asking helps avoid real problems.