Hotchpot Clause (Bring into Account) (BC)

Summary

This clause directs that any sum which the will-maker gave to their children as a loan or gift before the will-maker's death will not be claimed as a debt owing at the time of the will-maker's death but will be taken into account in the division of the residue of the estate. This clause includes practical guidance and drafting notes. The term "hotchpot" refers to a rule of equity under which a person, interested along with others in an estate, has previously received funds from the will-maker which must be taken into account in the distribution of the estate. Although an archaic term, it is useful shorthand for an accounting process which a will-maker may wish the executor and the beneficiaries to undertake. The inclusion of a reference to a debt which may not be legally constituted is important because under the Limitation Act, S.B.C. 2012, c. 13, enforcement of a simple debt is statute-barred 2 years after being incurred if no payments or acknowledgment of the debt occurs during that...