Should Your Child Really Be Your Executor?

Being trustworthy isn’t the same as being ready to administer an estate.

Most people choose an executor based on trust. A spouse. An adult child. A sibling. A close friend.

That makes sense, but choosing an executor isn’t just about who you trust. It’s also about who is willing and able to take on the work.

An executor isn’t an honorary title. It’s a legal and administrative job that can easily last a year or longer. It may involve applying for probate, filing tax returns, selling property, managing investments, dealing with private companies and debts, keeping detailed accounts and communicating with beneficiaries.

The role can also carry personal exposure. For example, an executor who distributes estate assets before the estate’s tax obligations have been resolved may be personally liable for unpaid amounts owing to the CRA. And they have to do all of this work while grieving themselves.

For many BC families, naming someone close is still the right answer. For others, particularly where the estate is large, the family is complicated, or the children simply shouldn’t have to carry the burden, a corporate executor can be worth considering.

For families with an established team of investment, tax and legal advisors, the decision can also affect who remains involved after death.

This Is a Job, Not an Honour

An executor is responsible for administering the estate and carrying out the instructions in the will. In practical terms, that can mean:

Securing homes and other property
Locating bank, investment and insurance assets
Determining debts and liabilities
Applying for probate
Dealing with private corporations or business interests
Coordinating appraisals and property sales
Filing final and estate tax returns
Working with CRA toward tax clearance
Keeping a complete accounting of estate transactions
Managing investments while the estate remains open
Communicating with beneficiaries
Establishing any trusts created under the will
Eventually distributing the estate
Preserving or liquidating physical assets

Why Consider a Corporate Executor?

So when you name your child because “they are the organized one,” what you’re really doing is appointing them to manage a temporary business. One that involves the family, their inheritance and potentially a sizable sum of money. That’s worth thinking about differently.

Experience — Most people act as executor once or twice in their lifetime, if at all. A professional trust company does this every day and has established processes for probate, tax, accounting and estate administration.

Continuity — The person you name at 55 may be elderly, ill, living abroad or no longer willing to act by the time they’re needed. A corporation doesn’t age alongside you.

Independence — If beneficiaries already disagree about money, appointing one of them to control the estate can add another layer of tension. A corporate executor has no family history, favourites or old grievances.

Capacity for complexity — Private companies, multiple properties, foreign assets and large investment portfolios can make an estate look more like a business transaction than a simple administrative exercise.

Less burden on family — Your children can remain beneficiaries and siblings instead of becoming administrators, bookkeepers and referees.

Not just anyone can be a corporate executor. In British Columbia, a company cannot simply offer executor services because it wants to. Corporate executor work generally falls within regulated trust business and is carried out by properly authorized trust companies and other permitted institutions.

The practical takeaway: if you’re considering a corporate executor, make sure you’re dealing with an institution that is actually authorized to do the job.

Will the Professionals Who Know Your Family Stay Involved?

The professionals who know your family may hold years of valuable context. Your lawyer may understand the thinking behind the will, your accountant the history of a private company or tax strategy, and your investment advisor how the portfolio supports the family’s long-term plans. But their continued involvement is not automatic.

Once the executor takes control, they generally determine how estate assets are administered and which professionals remain involved. Some corporate executors prefer to use their own investment platform or professional relationships. Others are willing to continue working with the family’s existing team.

Neither approach is inherently wrong. Families should simply understand which one they are agreeing to before the executor is appointed. Continuity should be addressed before the will is finalized, not assumed after death.

If continuity matters, ask upfront:

Can our current lawyer, accountant and investment advisor remain involved?
Must estate assets move to your institution or investment platform?
Who will coordinate legal, tax and investment decisions while the estate is administered?
If the will creates an ongoing trust, can the existing professional team continue to support it?

What you may trade away:

Cost — Professional administration comes with fees, which can be meaningful on a larger estate. Ask how compensation is calculated, what is included and which costs may be charged separately.

Loss of accumulated context — A new team may not know the history behind the family business, portfolio, properties or earlier planning decisions. They can only work from what has been documented.

More process — Corporate executors follow formal policies, document decisions and may require additional approvals. That discipline can be valuable, but it may also feel slower and less personal.

The same independence that keeps a corporate executor outside family politics can also inadvertently create distance from the people and professionals who know the family best.

You Don’t Have to Choose One or the Other

This doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing decision. A hybrid approach can work just as well.

1. Co-executors — A family member and corporate executor act together. The family member brings personal context; the corporation brings technical expertise and administration.

2. Corporate alternate executor — A family member is named first, with the corporation stepping in only if they are unable or unwilling to act.

3. Agent for executor — The family member remains the legal executor but hires a trust company to handle much of the administrative work underneath them.

That last option can be especially useful. Your child keeps the decision-making role without having to spend evenings chasing tax slips, reconciling estate accounts and coordinating probate paperwork.

For families that value both personal judgment and professional administration, one of these hybrid structures may offer the best of both worlds.

Questions to ask before choosing:

What will the fees actually look like on an estate of your size?
Who will your family deal with day-to-day?
Will your existing lawyer, accountant and investment advisor remain involved?
Do investments need to move to the executor’s own platform?
How does the company handle disagreements between beneficiaries?
Could a co-executor, alternate executor or agent arrangement work better?

Most importantly, revisit the decision over time. The right executor at 55 may not be the right executor at 75.

The Bottom Line

There isn’t a universally better answer between a family member and a corporate executor.

A simpler estate — A straightforward estate with cooperative beneficiaries may be perfectly manageable for an organized family member supported by good professional advisors.

A complex estate — A larger estate involving private companies, significant tax considerations, multiple properties or more complicated family dynamics may benefit from professional administration.

And many families will land somewhere in between.

The key is to choose deliberately:

Treat executorship as a job, not an honour
Match the executor to the complexity of the estate
Consider the burden you’re placing on family
Understand fees and investment policies upfront
Protect important professional relationships
Consider hybrid structures before assuming it’s all-or-nothing

The goal isn’t simply to name someone you trust. It’s to name someone who is willing and able to do the job when the time comes.

Reviewing who should administer your estate? We can help you think it through.
At OceanFront [1], we’re here to help! Contact us today for more information on financial planning.

Sources: Wills, Estates and Succession Act, SBC 2009, c. 13 · Trustee Act, RSBC 1996, c. 464 · Financial Institutions Act, RSBC 1996, c. 141 · BC Financial Services Authority, Authorized Trust Companies · Canada Revenue Agency, Doing Taxes for Someone Who Died · Truvera Trust Corporation, Executor Services

[1]OceanFront is a brand name under which Lindsay Insurance and Financial Planning Inc. and OceanFront Investment Counsel Inc. operate. Lindsay Insurance and Financial Planning Inc. is a subsidiary of OceanFront Wealth Inc. (“OFWI”) and operates under the trade name OceanFront Wealth (“OFW”). OFW is a licensed insurance agency authorized to offer insurance products and services across Canada. All insurance, products and services are offered through licensed advisors. OceanFront Investment Counsel Inc. (“OFIC”) is a subsidiary of OFWI and offers discretionary portfolio management services. Information contained herein, relating to OFIC is intended only for Canadians residing in the provinces where OFIC is registered. For a list of provinces, please visit our Relationship Disclosure Page. This material is for informational purposes only and does not constitute individualized investment, tax, legal, or estate planning advice. Please consult your professional advisor regarding your personal circumstances.