What Is a Common-Law Spouse Entitled to in Ontario If Their Partner Dies?

A surviving common-law partner has no automatic share of an estate when the other partner dies without a will. For intestacy, "spouse" in the Succession Law Reform Act has the Family Law Act meaning, which is married spouses only. A common-law partner does not inherit automatically under those rules.

You can still make a claim. A qualifying common-law spouse can apply for dependant's support from the estate, and for that part of the Act "spouse" has the Family Law Act s. 29 meaning. Under s. 29 that generally means two people who cohabited continuously for at least three years, or who are in a relationship of some permanence and are parents of a child. The application must be made within six months of the grant of letters probate or letters of administration.

How each asset is held may matter, so gather your documents and ask a lawyer. Pensions have their own rules: a spouse on the date of death is entitled to the pre-retirement death benefit, which can include a qualifying common-law spouse, but a married spouse living separate and apart on that date is not. Because the deadline is short, speak to a lawyer promptly.