What if you were to become incapacitated because of illness or injury and unable to make your own decisions? A power of attorney (POA) is the next document you’ll want to complete in your estate plan. When you’re finished, make sure you put your will in an easy-to-find, secure place-such as a fire safe or safety deposit box-and tell your executor where it can be found.Ĭompare the Best Savings Accounts in Canada > They don’t have to be accountants or lawyers: they just need to be responsible enough to know when to hire professionals to make those bigger decisions. If it is too hard to find a single friend or family member, consider asking more than one person to step into the essential roles. “Suddenly we were faced with trying to find a person who was both financially responsible and had our daughters’ best interests at heart-that’s not easy to find, even in a large family,” confesses Adam (we’ve changed their names to protect their privacy). Most people will select their spouse, but you should also choose an alternate, and that can be hard: just ask Adam and Sheila Chang. One of the most important decisions is choosing your executor. Thankfully, a basic will prepared by a lawyer can cost as little as $500 and take just half a day to complete. While it may be hard for busy families, making time to create a will is essential. Finally, if you have dependent children, you should name a guardian. It should also include instructions for your burial and funeral. ![]() You must clearly state who will be your executor (the person responsible for carrying out your last wishes and for filing paperwork, including your last tax return), decide who gets your assets, and at what age the beneficiaries will receive their inheritance. This is especially important if you and your partner are not formally married: common-law spouses do not necessarily have the same property rights as legally married spouses.įor a will to be effective, it needs to clearly indicate your wishes, be readily found, and be easily verified by the courts (known as probate, but more on that later). Die without a will-known as “dying intestate”-and the government gets to decide who your beneficiaries are and how your assets will be divvied up. “It’s the cornerstone of your estate plan,” says Julie Barsel, family and estate lawyer with English Bay Law Corporation in Vancouver. The lesson here is that the first and most important step in protecting those you love is to make a will. “Most people don’t realize that your spouse doesn’t automatically inherit your estate,” explains Pascoe. And every year the courts charged their administration fees. Every year, the widow would have to apply for access to that money to pay the bills and care for her growing kids. Since his three children were under the age of six, their portion of the inheritance was placed into a trust that was administered by the court until they turned 18. “The rest was divided equally among his children,” says Pascoe. “His intention was to make a will and leave everything to his wife, but he was tragically killed in a car crash before he could.” When the dust finally settled, the Ontario courts ruled that his wife would only inherit $250,000 from her late husband’s estate. Lawrence Pascoe recalls a relatively wealthy client who married and fathered kids in his early 40s. ![]() READ MORE: 9 steps to your estate plan Where there’s a will By following our guide you’ll not only learn how and why to protect your family, but ensure that your legacy lives on with those you love. We’ve created a list of steps to help you establish a solid estate plan. “Consider estate planning an attempt to eliminate any uncertainties and tough decisions that your loved ones need to make after you die or become incapacitated,” explains Lawrence Pascoe, an Ottawa family and estate lawyer with more than three decades of experience. Unfortunately, the subject can seem intimidating and confusing-and for some it’s simply too morbid to think about. Whether you’re a struggling young parent or a wealthy retiree, every life stage brings challenges when it comes to estate planning. The Piasentins aren’t alone in worrying about how to protect their family in the event of disability or death. Could the family continue to survive on one salary? Could the Piasentins save for their children’s education while paying down their mortgage and saving for their own retirement? And, God forbid, what if something tragic were to happen to Eddy or Chantelle? While the announcement of their fifth child was not unwelcome, it was certainly unexpected and the couple was a little apprehensive. She’d just stepped into the dining room holding a drugstore pregnancy test. “It happened again.” These three simple words jolted Eddy Piasentin’s attention away from feeding his four children their lunch and onto Chantelle, his wife.
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