In the ordinary course of events, death carries a definite sense of finality. The law, however, possesses a mind of its own.  

In an interesting decision that came out of the Quebec Superior Court, Re Imanpoorsaid, 2021 QCCS 4977, a man was brought back to life by the courts.  

This is not to say the man was physically resurrected – the courts have not achieved that power yet. Rather, the Quebec Superior Court in this case passed judgment ordering the annulment of a declaration of death.  

In Re Imanpoorsaid, the alleged death was challenged by a life insurance provider seeking to free itself from the obligation of paying out on the $500,000.00 policy on the man’s life. The allegedly deceased disappeared after a business trip in 2008, at a time when he and his family were experiencing financial difficulties. Quebec law permits a party to seek a declaration of death when a person had been missing for seven years. Such judgments, when granted, mean the missing person is legally presumed deceased.  

However, a declaration of death is reversible given reliable evidence that the individual is in fact living. As stated by the Court: “A declaratory judgment of death declares a death; it does not reflect the fact that a person is actually dead.” 

This legal fiction can lead to interesting headlines, where the allegedly deceased comes “back-to-life”. In this case, there was evidence of an Iranian passport and ID card in the “deceased’s” name which had been used several times to travel in and out of Iran and register for state benefits there. This was held to be sufficient to annul the declaration of death. 

In Ontario, section 2(5) of the Declarations of Death Act, and section 209 of the Insurance Act, provide for similar powers to Quebec’s legislation to declare an individual deceased when they have been missing for seven years. Further, the Absentees Act provides certain powers to administer a missing person’s property. 

Declarations of death are highly fact dependent and certainly reversible as seen in this case, where the law seems to have been abused. 

Thank you for reading and have a great day!  

Suzana Popovic-Montag & Raphael Leitz