The Duties of an Executor
An executor is an individual or institution that is named in a will whose duty is to distribute estate assets according to the testator’s wishes. Acting as an executor can be stressful and time consuming so it is a good idea for a testator to make his or her choice wisely, and for someone who is asked to be an executor to investigate and review exactly what the job entails. Often the executor is the spouse of the deceased. That tends to make the role somewhat more straightforward than it would be for a family member, friend or other acquaintance. In any event, this article covers the duties and obligations of an executor.
Arranging the funeral
In addition to arranging the burial or cremation and funeral services according to the deceased’s wishes the executor would be responsible in ensuring that family, friends and interested parties (especially employer) have been notified about the death. Family members will most likely assist in this including the posting of the obituary. If there are sufficient funds in the bank account of the deceased the bank will usually release funds to cover the cost of the funeral. Read more 
Provisus Monthly Insight – June 2017
DON’T SELL IN MAY; SETTLE IN – Stock investors often hear about “sell in May and go away” around this time of year. It implies that investors should sell their stocks in early May and buy them back in late October at a lower price. Since 1968 the S&P/TSX Index has risen an average of 8.0% (including dividends) from November to April but added only 1.5% from May to October. Interestingly enough, the “sell in May and go away” phenomenon appears to be universal across international stock markets.
Click here to read more: Don’t Sell in May; Settle In
Life Insurance and the Capital Dividend Account
Many business owners are unaware that corporate owned life insurance combined with the Capital Dividend Account (CDA) provides an opportunity to distribute corporate surplus on the death of a shareholder to the surviving shareholders or family members tax-free.
Income earned by a corporation and then distributed to a shareholder is subject to tax integration which results in the total tax paid between the two being approximately the same as if the shareholder earned the income directly. Integration also means that if a corporation is in receipt of funds which it received tax-free, then those funds should be tax free when distributed to the shareholder.
The Capital Dividend Account is a notional account which tracks these particular tax-free amounts accumulated by the corporation. It is not shown in accounting records or financial statements of the corporation. If there is a balance in the CDA it may be shown in the notes section of the financial statements for information purposes only.
Generally, the tax-free amounts referred to, are the non-taxable portions of capital gains received by the corporation and the death benefit proceeds of life insurance policies where the corporation is the beneficiary. Read more
DM Monthly Newsletter – May 2017
Most Important Economy Grinds Ahead, Stocks Follow – While recently perusing the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) website, we were struck by a chart showing real (or ex-inflation) US GDP growth over the past decade. As expected, output plunged in 2008/09 as the financial crisis unfolded and businesses and individuals collectively retrenched. Since economic activity bottomed in mid-2009, however, the recovery has been remarkably consistent, with American growth tracking along an almost perfectly straight upward tilting path.
Click here to read more: DM-Monthly-Report-May-17
