The late Scott Weiland, beloved American singer and songwriter, died December
3, 2015, leaving behind 2 teen aged children and ex-wife, Mary Forsberg.
Prior to Weiland’s death, he had been paying Forsberg $12,519.00 in monthly
spousal support and $7,201.00 per month in child support since 2004 and recent reports
reveal that Forsberg is now seeking continued child and spousal support
in the same amounts from Weiland’s estate.
Interestingly, Forsberg is the administrator of Weiland’s estate despite
the marriage ending over a decade before his death. Nonetheless, Forsberg
will still need to obtain a
court order for the support she seeks or else she may be liable as administrator for distributing
funds from the estate improperly.
Both support payors and recipients should be aware that the obligation
to pay support does not end on death. This is important for support payors to consider when drafting wills and
planning estates so as to ensure that testators’ wishes can actually
be carried out and won’t be frustrated by unexpected support claims.
Perhaps more importantly, support recipients (who may rely on support
for their own survival and that of their children) should be aware of
the laws in place to protect dependants of deceased persons and take any
necessary steps to secure support after the death of the payor.
Much like the American laws governing Weiland’s estate, Part V of the
Succession Law Reform Act (SLRA) sets out rules regarding dependant support claims against the estates
of Ontarians.
Pursuant to the SLRA, upon r
Just as Ms. Forsberg is claiming support on her own behalf (as a dependant
spouse) and also on her children’s behalf, a dependant’s support
claim can be made under the SLRA by the dependant or a dependant’s parent.
In order to preserve the funds held by the estate so that same are not
distributed to others while there is a pending application for the support
of a dependant, a court can also order that the administration of the
estate be partially or completely suspended to allow time for the court
to make a decision.
An estate administrator or other personal representative of the deceased
also has a responsibility to immediately stop distributing funds from
the estate as soon as he or she receives notice of a pending application
for the support of a dependant.
It is important for dependants to note, however, that there are time limits
within which an application must be commenced. Once the letters probate
are granted for the deceased’s will, any applications for support
must be made within 6 months. Although a court retains the power to make
orders with respect to any remaining estate funds at the time of an application
brought after this 6 month period, there is a risk that there may be no
such funds remaining.