The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) is an independent organization that studies laws and makes recommendations to the government about how to make laws fairer, easier to use, and more effective. You can find more information about us on our website, here: www.lco‐cdo.org.
In this project, we are studying Ontario’s probate system. Probate is a court procedure which provides evidence that someone administering the estate of a deceased person is legally authorized to do so. “Administering an estate” means gathering the deceased’s assets, paying debts and distributing what is left to the beneficiaries. We want to know how well the probate system is working for people administering small estates. We have not yet settled on the definition of “small” estate but it is most likely less than $100,000 and maybe even less than $50,000 (before debts and expenses are paid).
We are interested in your story whether you applied for probate or administered a small estate without probate.
This questionnaire is mainly directed at individuals who have administered a small estate in Ontario, either with or without legal or other professional assistance. If you are a lawyer or other professional, we encourage you to respond to the Questions for Feedback in the Consultation Paper available at the LCO’s website.
We will use your answers to help us understand how the law is working and to make recommendations for change. We will not use your answers for any other purpose. No one except the people at the LCO will be allowed to see the answers to your questions. We will never give out your name or personal information. If we write about your experiences in our report, we will do it in a way that others cannot identify you.
Completing This Questionnaire
You can answer our questions in the way that is easiest for you.
- write the answers to our questions on this form and mail it back to us at the address below,
- fill out this form on your computer and email it back to us as an attachment,
- fill out the form on our website,
- or call us using our local or toll‐free telephone numbers, and we will write the answers down for you.
To Contact Us
Law Commission of Ontario
2032 Ignat Kaneff Building
Osgoode Hall Law School, York University
4700 Keele Street
Toronto, ON M3J 1P3
Fax: (416) 650‐8418
E‐mail: LawCommission@lco‐cdo.org
Toronto : (416) 650‐8406
Toll‐free : 1 (866) 950‐8406
TTY : (416) 650‐8082