Can a dependant support order make the estate trustee personally liable if they've already distributed assets?

Potentially, yes — an estate trustee who distributes the estate without regard to a known or likely dependant support claim can end up personally on the hook to make good the shortfall. Estate trustees are fiduciaries who owe duties to beneficiaries and, where relevant, to eligible dependants, and distributing too early — especially after being notified of a claim, or before the general timeline for claims has passed — carries real risk.

The Succession Law Reform Act gives a court discretion to allow a late dependant support claim against any part of the estate that remains undistributed, which is part of why trustees are generally cautious about distributing everything quickly after a death. A trustee who waits out a reasonable period, gets appropriate releases, or holds back a reserve for a known dependant is in a much safer position than one who pays everything out and later faces a successful claim with nothing left in the estate to satisfy it. Because the risk of personal liability turns on timing, notice, and what the trustee reasonably knew, an estate trustee facing a possible dependant support situation should get legal advice before distributing rather than after.