700 plain-language Q&As about wills & estates. Browse below, or search the whole library.
Probate — officially called a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee in Ontario — is a court process that confirms the validity of a will and the…
Read the full answer →In Ontario, registered accounts such as RRSPs, RRIFs, and TFSAs with a named beneficiary (or, for a spouse or common-law partner, designated as a TFSA…
Read the full answer →If the original will cannot be found after a person dies in Ontario, the estate may still be administered using a copy of the will, but it requires a…
Read the full answer →Yes. When a will's validity is genuinely in dispute, an Ontario court can order that it be "proved in solemn form" — a formal court process, rather…
Read the full answer →Ontario courts weigh a wide range of factors under Part V of the SLRA, and there's no fixed formula or percentage that applies across cases. Courts…
Read the full answer →The RDSP has to be closed, since it exists solely for that one beneficiary. There's no way to keep it open or transfer it to someone else once they've…
Read the full answer →The RDSP still has to be wound up on death regardless of the beneficiary's Disability Tax Credit status at the time. Death always closes an RDSP, since…
Read the full answer →When both joint holders of an RDSP die, a new holder has to be appointed before the plan can continue operating, since an RDSP always needs an active…
Read the full answer →An RDSP is tied to one specific beneficiary, so it does have to be wound up when that person dies — it can't simply continue for someone else the way…
Read the full answer →Often, at least in part. RDSPs receive federal government contributions, grants and bonds, on top of personal savings, and when the plan has to be…
Read the full answer →When an RDSP holder dies, a new holder has to be put in place before the plan can keep operating, since every RDSP needs an active holder managing it.…
Read the full answer →There's no fixed, government-set schedule requiring reassessment at set intervals for someone with a progressive condition like dementia. Capacity in…
Read the full answer →Yes. Ontario courts recognize a remedy called rectification, which lets a judge correct a will's wording where a genuine clerical or drafting error…
Read the full answer →Yes, a court has discretion to reduce, or in some circumstances waive, a bond requirement for a non-resident executor — it isn't an all-or-nothing rule…
Read the full answer →There's no single rule that automatically resolves this - whoever holds legal authority over disposition of the body, generally the estate trustee, or…
Read the full answer →Not automatically, but it can be relevant. A separation agreement that validly released estate claims generally continues to apply on its own terms…
Read the full answer →Generally, yes. Ontario courts have significantly expanded the use of remote and virtual attendance for many types of proceedings, including estate…
Read the full answer →Yes. An Ontario court can remove a guardian of property or of the person who mismanages the incapable person's finances or care, acts in a conflict of…
Read the full answer →Yes, a beneficiary can apply to the Superior Court to remove one of two deadlocked co-executors, though removal is treated as a significant step rather…
Read the full answer →Yes, this is a recognized ground for removal, because an estate trustee's fiduciary duty includes managing and investing estate assets prudently, not…
Read the full answer →Moving abroad after being appointed isn't, by itself, automatic grounds for removal — beneficiaries generally need to show the move actually impairs…
Read the full answer →It's more complicated once someone has already started acting. Before doing anything — before collecting estate assets, dealing with the bank, or…
Read the full answer →Arranging repatriation of remains typically falls to whoever has the practical and legal authority to make disposition decisions, usually the next of…
Read the full answer →If you suspect an attorney acting under a power of attorney for property is misusing their authority or financially abusing the grantor, you can bring…
Read the full answer →There are several avenues to report suspected financial abuse of an elderly relative in Ontario, and which ones make sense depends on the specific…
Read the full answer →"Resealing" refers to a process some provinces use to formally recognize a grant of probate issued somewhere else, rather than making the estate…
Read the full answer →A family RESP plan is designed with some flexibility built in for exactly this kind of situation, since it generally allows the plan's earnings and…
Read the full answer →It can matter, yes. RESPs and the federal grants attached to them are generally structured around Canadian residency requirements for the beneficiary,…
Read the full answer →An RESP does not automatically collapse just because the subscriber has died. The plan can keep existing, but someone needs to step into the…
Read the full answer →Yes — many RESP providers allow you to name a successor subscriber, and doing so is a common way to keep the plan running smoothly if you die before…
Read the full answer →Yes, in appropriate circumstances. Where a caregiver's conduct toward an elderly person involves harassment, threats, or a genuine safety risk, a…
Read the full answer →Yes. You can revoke or change your power of attorney for personal care at any time, as long as you have the mental capacity to do so. Capacity for this…
Read the full answer →In Ontario, there are three recognized ways to revoke a will. The most common is making a new will that includes a revocation clause — typically a…
Read the full answer →In Ontario, there are several ways a will can be revoked under the Succession Law Reform Act. The most common method is by making a new valid will that…
Read the full answer →Generally, yes. A person has the right to refuse a capacity assessment under the Substitute Decisions Act in most circumstances, since the Act is…
Read the full answer →After receiving probate (the Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee), the estate trustee's main administrative tasks begin in earnest. The…
Read the full answer →Naming a person directly as the beneficiary of your RRSP is almost always preferable to naming your estate, for both tax and practical reasons. When…
Read the full answer →Not quite; these operate under different mechanics, even though both can benefit a disabled family member. Under federal tax rules, RRSP and RRIF…
Read the full answer →Whether a deceased person's creditors can claim RRSP proceeds depends largely on how the RRSP beneficiary is designated. If the RRSP proceeds are paid…
Read the full answer →Whoever is holding the original will — typically the proposed estate trustee, the drafting lawyer, or the court itself once it has been filed — is…
Read the full answer →You should still update your estate plan soon after remarrying, even though the reason has changed. Until January 1, 2022, marriage in Ontario…
Read the full answer →Yes. A spousal trust established by your will can be a powerful tool for balancing the competing interests of a surviving spouse and children from a…
Read the full answer →Setting up a secondary (contingent) beneficiary on a life insurance policy in Ontario is done through a change of beneficiary form available from your…
Read the full answer →A secondary will is an additional will that covers certain categories of assets, typically ones that do not require probate to transfer. The most…
Read the full answer →The "section 116" concept refers to a federal Income Tax Act process that applies when a non-resident of Canada disposes of certain taxable Canadian…
Read the full answer →"Section 3 counsel" refers to legal representation arranged under section 3 of the Substitute Decisions Act, which gives a person whose capacity is at…
Read the full answer →Yes. Ontario's civil procedure rules allow a court to order a party bringing or contesting a claim — including someone challenging a will — to post…
Read the full answer →Generally, no. If the beneficiary named on a segregated fund falls within a protected relationship, typically a spouse, child, grandchild, or parent of…
Read the full answer →It can, but it isn't automatic for every beneficiary. Because a segregated fund is an insurance contract, naming a beneficiary who falls into a…
Read the full answer →A segregated fund is structured as an insurance contract, and it typically comes with two separate guarantees that apply in different situations. The…
Read the full answer →A segregated fund is an insurance contract, so when it has a named beneficiary, the proceeds generally pass directly to that person on the owner's…
Read the full answer →This is a much harder claim to make than one brought by a current partner, and separating years before death can be a real obstacle. To qualify as a…
Read the full answer →Not automatically unenforceable, but the lack of independent legal advice is a significant factor a court can weigh in deciding whether to uphold, or…
Read the full answer →Courts generally give significant weight to a validly signed separation agreement in which each spouse released their right to claim against the…
Read the full answer →Possibly, yes. If a separation agreement is silent on estate claims, there's no release standing in the way — the question just becomes whether the…
Read the full answer →Yes. A Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee already issued by an Ontario court isn't necessarily the final word if a genuine problem with the…
Read the full answer →Generally, a settlement reached at mediation between capable adult parties is binding on its own once it's properly documented and signed, without…
Read the full answer →Where an Ontario court finds that part of a will is valid and severs out only the invalid portion — for example, a clause procured by undue influence,…
Read the full answer →It depends on how the agreement is drafted, and this is one of the more commonly overlooked gaps in shareholder agreements. A shotgun clause is built…
Read the full answer →Yes — a sibling can qualify as a "dependant" under Part V of the Succession Law Reform Act, but only if they meet the same core test that applies to…
Read the full answer →When siblings who've inherited a family business can't agree on how to run it, the first place to look is any shareholders' or buy-sell agreement…
Read the full answer →When several siblings inherit equal shares in a family business, the biggest structural risk is deadlock — with no one holding a majority, any decision…
Read the full answer →Ontario's Succession Law Reform Act contains rules for commorientes — situations where two people die at the same time or in circumstances where the…
Read the full answer →When two people die in the same accident or circumstances and it cannot be determined who died first, Ontario's Succession Law Reform Act provides a…
Read the full answer →Ontario's Small Estate Certificate process is available for estates valued at $150,000 or less, a threshold that's been in effect since April 1, 2021…
Read the full answer →No, and this is a distinction worth understanding clearly. Memorializing an account is a feature some platforms offer as a matter of their own policy —…
Read the full answer →If the sole executor dies during the administration of an estate and the original testator's estate is not yet fully distributed, the administration…
Read the full answer →If every beneficiary named to receive your residue dies before you, and none of them qualifies for Ontario's anti-lapse rule (a child or grandchild…
Read the full answer →When a married person dies in Ontario, their surviving spouse has a choice: accept whatever the will provides, or elect to receive an equalization…
Read the full answer →Yes, under Canadian federal tax rules, certain assets can be transferred to a surviving spouse or common-law partner at their original cost base rather…
Read the full answer →The spousal rollover is a federal income tax provision that allows capital property to be transferred to a surviving spouse or common-law partner at…
Read the full answer →Not automatically. A spousal support order made while someone was alive doesn't, by default, continue against their estate after death unless the order…
Read the full answer →If you lose mental capacity in Ontario and have no power of attorney for property in place, no one automatically has the right to manage your finances…
Read the full answer →No. In Ontario, stepchildren have no automatic inheritance rights. Under both the intestacy rules (if you die without a will) and general estate law,…
Read the full answer →Yes, there's a formal mechanism for this rather than beneficiaries simply having to wait and hope the named executor doesn't apply. An interested party…
Read the full answer →Where you store your will matters as much as how it is drafted. A will that cannot be found after death may lead the estate to be administered as if no…
Read the full answer →It depends on how the specific settlement and annuity were structured at the time the claim was resolved. There's no single rule that applies to every…
Read the full answer →It depends entirely on how the structured settlement was set up. A structured settlement is usually funded through an annuity purchased from an insurer…
Read the full answer →Sometimes, yes. Where the evidence on a will challenge is largely documentary, undisputed, or otherwise capable of being fairly assessed without the…
Read the full answer →Generally, yes — supply-managed quota is an asset the person holding it can address in their will, and it forms part of the estate like other property.…
Read the full answer →There's no fixed priority. Both a child from an earlier marriage and a second, current spouse can each qualify as a "dependant" under Part V of the…
Read the full answer →Yes. Being named in the will doesn't automatically satisfy Ontario's dependant support rules — the real question under Part V of the SLRA is whether…
Read the full answer →There's no fixed government fee schedule for an estate trustee's surety bond — the premium is set by the insurance or surety company underwriting it,…
Read the full answer →A survivorship clause in a will conditions a beneficiary's entitlement on surviving the testator by a specified period — typically 30 or 60 days.…
Read the full answer →Yes, in appropriate circumstances. Where there's a genuine dispute before the court about whether a guardian should be appointed, or where concerns…
Read the full answer →Potentially, yes - Canada has tax treaties with many countries that can affect how certain cross-border payments and dispositions are taxed, and…
Read the full answer →Yes. Where someone urgently needs a decision-maker for their property or personal care before a full guardianship application can be completed, an…
Read the full answer →A guardianship doesn't end automatically the moment someone's condition improves — it generally requires a formal step confirming the person has…
Read the full answer →Testamentary capacity is the legal standard that determines whether a person is mentally capable of making a valid will. In Ontario, courts have…
Read the full answer →Yes, though the core protective principle, a trustee with absolute discretion so the beneficiary has no enforceable entitlement, is the same either…
Read the full answer →Yes — but whether you can depends on whether you have testamentary capacity at the time you sign the update, not on your general health. A person can…
Read the full answer →For the most part, TFSA proceeds are received tax-free by a named beneficiary. The fair market value of the TFSA at the date of the holder's death is…
Read the full answer →Both designations determine where your TFSA goes on death, but they work very differently and produce different tax outcomes. A "successor holder" can…
Read the full answer →Yes, in appropriate circumstances. Ontario courts have the power to order costs against a non-party who funded and had significant control over…
Read the full answer →"Fair" doesn't have to mean "equal," and that distinction is the starting point for most farm succession plans. The farm, or shares in a farm…
Read the full answer →To transfer real estate that was owned solely by the deceased in Ontario, the executor typically needs a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee…
Read the full answer →Yes - a transmission application can still move title to a property with an outstanding mortgage; the mortgage itself doesn't need to be paid off first…
Read the full answer →In most cases where Ontario real estate was held solely in the deceased's name, a transmission application to the land registry still relies on a…
Read the full answer →An Ontario power of attorney for personal care may not be automatically recognized in other provinces, countries, or jurisdictions — each place has its…
Read the full answer →Yes. In Ontario, a trustee has a legal duty to keep proper accounts and to provide beneficiaries with information about the trust. This is part of the…
Read the full answer →Links go to the official consolidated text. Legislation changes — confirm you are reading the current version.
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