Is Your Will Up To Date?

On the wall in my Whitby office, there is a little sign that reads “Is Your Will up to date?” It’s small, unassuming, and sometimes you may even miss it.

I NEED TO MAKE IT BIGGER!

This little sign holds a big and important message. DO NOT DIE WITH AN OUT OF DATE WILL OR WORSE, WITHOUT A WILL AT ALL.

I have had several clients attend at my office lately to prepare their Applications for Certificates of Estate Trustee after the death of a loved one. That loved one, however, has gone without a will. An estate is difficult enough to manage with a Will- imagine having to start with nothing to go on. You don’t know what they own; or you do, but you don’t know where the deed is; or you have no idea whom they bank with; government agencies will not speak with you; or you are the only next of kin, but no one will believe you!

No matter how small or large an Estate is, I cannot stress how important a Will is to that Estate.

Here’s my cautionary tale about Aunt June’s Car.

Aunt June died last year. She lived in a rental apartment and didn’t have very much except for an old generic label car. Her nephew drove it a couple of times and she told him and his mom (her sister Anne), that he could have it, if anything happened to her.

When June passed, Anne had the ownership in her hand and attended at the MTO kiosk nearby. She was asked for a copy of the will.

“There is none”, she replied.

“You cannot transfer the car without a will or proof that you have the right to do this.”

“What do you mean?” she asked, “What can I do?”

“Go to a lawyer. You need to provide notarized proof that no member of her family wants this car or objects to the transfer of it in to Little Bobby’s name by you as Estate Trustee.”

“But there must be 18 of us!”

During the next month or two I had about 18 of Aunt June’s family members walking in to my office in order to have their letters to the MTO notarized. Letters confirming that they didn’t want the car, didn’t object to the car being transferred to Little Bobby, and didn’t object to having Anne complete the transfer on behalf of the Estate of Aunt June. In other words, they needed to name an estate trustee and give her the right to administer the estate.

And that was just a car! They say that in the next ten years 750 million dollars are about to be passed down as inheritances here in Canada. Make sure that your share of that is properly set aside for your beneficiaries in a will prepared by a lawyer.

Imagine a bank, a credit card company, the municipality, and all of the service providers for your loved one’s house or cottage, refusing to speak with you because you cannot prove that you are the named Estate Trustee.

Save your loved ones the time and the decision making and have your Wills prepared or updated. You know your life better than any one else.

At the very least, a Will says to your Estate Trustee (and everyone else), “I trust you to do this for me”.

Call my office to set up an appointment for your Wills and Powers of Attorney.