B.C.'s Representation Agreement Act Amended

On March 26, 2001, the B.C. government introduced an omnibus bill containing amendments to the Representation Agreement Act and other statutes related to adult guardianship. The Adult Guardianship Statutes Amendment Act, 2001 (Bill 6) was given Royal Assent only three days later. Some of the amendments are already in force; those pertaining to the Representation Agreement Act will come into force by regulation, probably within a few months. Commentary in the Canadian Estate Planning Guide will be revised with an upcoming report to reflect these new amendments which are, in fact, quite substantial. The following are some of the changes contained in Bill 6:

• The execution of agreements is simplified by reducing the number of certificates required from six to two.
• An agreement may provide that certain events which would otherwise result in the termination of an agreement (e.g., a marriage separation) shall not do so.
• Notaries will be allowed to give advice on representation agreements.
• The roles and responsibilities of representatives and monitors is clarified.
• Where two or more representatives are appointed, it will no longer be necessary to assign each a separate area of authority; which is to say, their areas of authority may overlap or be the same.

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