Probate applications are governed by Rule 74 of the Rules of Civil Procedure and sweeping changes to the process came into effect on January 1, 2022 through the Accelerating Access to Justice Act, 2021.  We have blogged about these changes in the past and this blog is intended to highlight what is new in the new Form 74A, Application for a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee.

The new Form 74A applies to three different types of probate applications and it replaces various different court forms that used to be applicable for individual applicants in each of the following,

1. Application for Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee with a Will (the former Form 74.04);
2. Application for Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee with a Will Limited to Assets Referred to in the Will (the Former 74.04.01)
3. Application for Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee without Will (the former 74.14).

The new Form 74A is also used for both categories of individual and corporate applicants now and it replaces the forms the were formerly designated for corporate applicants. 

The template for the new Form 74A is about three times longer than the former application forms.  There are new, more fulsome sections on:

• the Deceased’s spousal relationships at Part 3;
• the Applicant’s entitlement to apply at Part 6;
• the Applicant’s Declarations at Part 8.

These new sections specifically asks questions or declarations about

• whether the deceased was married at the time of death, and if so, whether the deceased was separated from his/her spouse at that time
• whether the applicant is the deceased’s spouse, and if so, whether the applicant has elected to receive an entitlement under section 5 of the Family Law Act
• the applicant’s relationship to the deceased and whether he/she is an Ontario resident if the applicant is applying without a will
• to identify whether there are other persons entitled to apply, to name them, and attach a Form 74G Renunciation for each of these individuals
• the applicant’s obligation to keep records of his/her administration of the estate, including lists and receipts of the assets and money that are received on behalf of the estate and all money and assets are distributed from the estate, in addition to the former declaration that the estate shall be administered in accordance with the law

The new Form 74A can be downloaded from the province’s court services website: http://ontariocourtforms.on.ca/en/rules-of-civil-procedure-forms/pre-formatted-fillable-estates-forms/

The old, obsolete forms can still be accessed here for comparison.

Thanks for reading!

Doreen So