Can my ex-spouse inherit my estate if I die without a will in Ontario?

Once your divorce is final, your former spouse is no longer your "spouse" under Ontario's intestacy rules and has no right to inherit your estate. A divorce order ends the marriage, and with it, the spousal inheritance entitlement under the Succession Law Reform Act.

Separation can have the same effect now, which is a change many people have not caught up with. Since January 1, 2022, a separated spouse is treated as having died before you for intestacy purposes — but only where the separation meets the statute's test: three or more years living separate and apart, or a separation agreement, family arbitration award, or court order settling your affairs. A recent separation with nothing signed will not qualify, and that spouse could still inherit.

There is also a nuance worth knowing: even after a divorce, a former spouse may still be a named beneficiary on registered accounts or life insurance policies if you never updated those designations. Those assets pass directly by the designation, not through the estate, so a former spouse could still receive them if the designation was never changed. Updating your designations after a divorce is as important as updating a will.