FAQ's

A Will is a legal document that sets out your wishes of how your property is to be distributed upon your death and who will oversee the administration of your estate.

Having a Will ensure peace of mind for you and your family and more specifically enables you to:

• Choose how your assets will be divided among your named beneficiaries
• Give specific items of property to specific people; and
• Appoint a guardian for your minor children.

Having a Will is an integral part of protecting your family from uncertainty and disruption at the time of your death. Without a Will, you are deemed to have died ‘intestate’ and Ontario intestacy law, specially the Succession Law Reform Act, will dictate how your property will be distributed upon your death.

Probate is a court process that confirms the validity of a Will. The Certificate of Appointment proves the authority of the Executor/Trustee (named in the Will) to administer the provisions of the deceased’s will or if there is no will, the Succession Law Reform Act lists who may apply to become the Executor of the estate as well as who the heirs of law would be.

The certificate of the court is relied on by third parties like financial institutions and land registry offices to confirm that the will can be relied upon and the named Estate Trustee has proper authority to act on behalf of the estate.

There is an Estate Administration Tax that is payable in Ontario when the Application for a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee is filed in the court. The rate is .5% on the first $50,000.00 of estate value and 1.5% on the balance of the estate. All assets that are owned by the deceased alone are subject to this tax. Jointly held assets that pass to the survivor, assets held in trust for someone else, assets with named beneficiaries like RRSP or RRIF accounts, life insurance with a named beneficiary are not included in the estate value as the basis for the tax calculation.

A Power of Attorney is a legal document in which you give someone you trust the right to make decisions for you if something happens and you are no longer able to look after matters on your own.

There are two types of Power of Attorney:

• Power of Attorney for Personal Care – concerns about your health care, housing and other aspects of your personal life if you become mentally incapable of making these decisions.
• Power of Attorney for Property – concerns decisions about your financial affairs.

You don’t have to create a power of attorney, but if something happens to you and you don’t have one, other arrangements will have to be made.

For a simple Will, Kayani Law Firm charges $350 + HST for an individual and $600 + HST for husband and wife. A Power of Attorney for Property and Personal Care is included with the Will at no additional cost.