In Davis v. Burns Estate, pending a wills variation claim, the Supreme Court of British Columbia granted an interim distribution to be made to a will beneficiary under § 155 of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act. Section 155 prohibits an executor from making a distribution after someone has commenced a wills variation claim unless the executor gets permission from the court. In the facts of this case, Patricia Burns died, leaving behind a significant other, Brent Dale, but disinheriting her daughter, Leslie Davis. Davis instantly filed a claims seeking to vary her mother’s will, as the will provisions did not adequately provide for her. Accordingly, Dale asked the court for an interim distribution, and Davis quickly followed suit. The court granted Dale’s application for interim distribution but denied Davis’s because she was not a beneficiary under the will.
See Stan Rule, Court Orders Interim Distribution Under Section 155 of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act, Rule of Law Blog, March 24, 2017.
Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.
