RAJPAUL ESTATE (RE), 2026 ABKB 546

The underlying Action arose from a dispute concerning the validity of a will in the Estate of Margaret Rajpaul. The Respondent, Romesh Singh, challenged the will and alleged that the deceased lacked testamentary capacity when it was executed. The Estate applied for Security for Costs pursuant to Rule 69 of the Surrogate Rules.

The Court held that, while Rule 69 confers the authority to order security for costs, the framework under Rule 4.22 of the Rules of Court can be used for guidance in exercising that discretion. The Respondent conceded that he had no assets in Alberta. Although he argued that an Order for security would effectively prevent him from continuing the Action, he provided no evidence to support that. The Court found that the relevant factors under Rule 4.22 favoured granting Security for Costs.

The Court noted that Romesh was not a beneficiary under the impugned will and, as a result, the Estate had no ability to recover any adverse Costs Award from his share of the Estate. This increased the Estate’s risk of unrecoverable litigation costs. The Court was satisfied that it was just and reasonable to require Security for Costs.

Romesh argued that security should be limited to $10,000 to $15,000 on the basis that suspicious circumstances could be determined as a threshold issue. The Court rejected that position, finding that the evidence relating to suspicious circumstances substantially overlapped with the evidence required to determine testamentary capacity, knowledge and approval, and undue influence. A separate hearing would create a risk of duplication, increased expense, and delay.

The Court ordered Romesh to post Security for Costs in the amount of $50,726.66, based on the Estate’s Bill of Costs calculated under Column 4 of Schedule C.