In a will challenge proceeding, the usual first step is for the parties to obtain an Order Giving Directions. As described in the Consolidated Practice Direction Concerning the Estates List in the Toronto Region, 

Orders giving directions in contested matters are designed to provide the parties with a procedural framework in which to prepare the proceeding for final adjudication. Rule 75.06 provides the court with considerable discretion and flexibility to put in place a process that will ensure the just, expeditious and least expensive determination of a proceeding on its merits. Parties are expected to take time and care in preparing proposed orders giving directions for consideration by the court. 

Model orders have been prepared by the court. These orders include provisions that allow the parties to obtain medical, legal and financial information from non-parties. 

The orders are often obtained on the consent of the parties to the proceeding. 

However, be aware of a recent decision of the Superior Court of Justice where the court refused to grant an Order Giving Directions that provided for the parties to obtain medical and financial records from non-parties. In Goyetche v. Woodruff, 2022 ONSC 927, the court held that the parties had to name the institutions from whom production was sought, and put them on notice.  

The court applied the principle that production from a non-party should not be ordered as a matter of course. The court rejected arguments that:

a) The parties did not know who all of the non-parties with relevant records were; 

b) The parties had all consented to the order;  

c) Similar production orders from non-parties were made on consent in previous matters. 

The case may be distinguishable as the case did not involve a will challenge. There was a duly appointed estate trustee who had the authority to request and obtain the records from non-parties. The court suggested that if the estate trustee refused to authorize the record holders to release documents, it might be appropriate to make an order requiring the estate trustee to do so. 

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