In Ontario they are the same office — the statutory term is estate trustee. Elsewhere 'executor' names the person appointed in a will, and 'trustee' the person who holds property under a trust.
The Canadian position
Ontario replaced 'executor' and 'administrator' with 'estate trustee with a will' and 'estate trustee without a will'. Other provinces retain the older terms.
One person often holds both roles: winding up the estate as executor, then holding a child's share as trustee until they come of age.
The Islamic position
Classical law has the wasi, who settles the estate, and separately a wali who manages a minor's property. Canadian drafting should name both explicitly.
All four schools want the same qualities in a wasi — adulthood and legal capacity, Islam, integrity and the ability to do the job. They differ on what failing one of them does. Three schools treat them as conditions of validity, so an appointment that fails one is void. The Hanafi school treats the appointment as valid and puts the remedy in the judge’s hands.
All four Sunni schools researched and sourced. Reviewed 2026-08-19. Full positions, evidence and sources — Who may be appointed wasi (executor and guardian).
Related madhhab issue: Hadanah and wilayah — who cares for a child, and who has authority over the child.
Making an Islamic will in Canada — province by province, and what makes one valid where you live →
This is legal information only. For advice on your own circumstances, speak to a lawyer.
Citations & sources
Every factual claim on this page traces to a source below. Details change — check the original source before relying on any figure, fee or legal position. Anything under “further reading” is related material, not a source for what is stated here.
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book 55: Wills and Testaments (Wasaya) — Sunnah.com
- Sahih Muslim, Book of Wills — Sunnah.com
- Succession Law Reform Act, RSO 1990, c S.26 — Government of Ontario
- Administering estates — Government of Ontario
- Apply for probate of an estate — Government of Ontario
- Estate Administration Tax — Government of Ontario
- Estates Act, RSO 1990, c E.21 — Government of Ontario
- Difference between executor and estate trustee ontario — Treadstone Law
- Executor vs administrator vs estate trustee ontario — Treadstone Law
- Holding property in trust ontario — Treadstone Law
- Statutory guardian property ontario — Treadstone Law
- Wills & estates practice — Treadstone Law