Anyone who can be lawfully appointed a trustee can be lawfully removed. But not lightly. Grounds must be carefully considered, both individually and collectively. Section 5 of Trustee Act giveth and sections 5 and 37, with the help of rules 14.05(3) (a) and (c) and 75.04 of the Rules of Civil Procedure taketh away. But it is well to remember that the Superior Court of Ontario has inherent jurisdiction to exercise over appropriate grounds. Rule 14.05 is however the friend of the estate litigator, not only because of its efficient and manageable originating process, but because the first 6 expressly stated grounds for relief fitting a cause under the Rule apply to estates or trustees. Nonetheless, the rule is not perfectly applicable to all circumstances, and counsel will wish to carefully assess the likelihood that the facts and issues may be overly complex in a particular case.
