# If the person who died has a surviving spouse or dependent (someone who they supported financially), their money and property may first go to those people before it goes to anyone named in the will. # If the person who died has money and property that is jointly owned with another person or has a designated beneficiary (e.g. an insurance policy or joint bank account), it may pass directly to the survivor on the death of the joint owner if it was truly intended as a gift to the survivor. In addition, a dependent can make a claim for that money or property if they need it to support themselves.

In case you are seriously hurt in an accident or you become seriously ill, you need a power of attorney, otherwise you and your family may incur significant expense or lose control of your property, finances and even the ability to make decisions regarding your personal care if you become physically or mentally incapacitated.

Probate is the process by which a court confirms that a will is valid. The process involves fees (probate fees). In Ontario the fees are $250 for the first $50,000 of your estate and $15 for each additional $1,000 with no upper limit. This tax can set you back almost $15,000 on a $1 million estate. In many cases, probate fees can be avoided altogether by ensuring that certain steps are taken.

PASSING WITHOUT A WILL www.sslawyers.ca Then when we know both of these things, why do we not plan to ensure that the hard work that we have done in this lifetime is passed on to our future generations with ease, and in the best possible manner? This means, ensuring all our assets are accounted for, are looked at in specific ways to ensure the best tax savings, and that the most amount ends up in the hands of those that we love. A persons belongings are going to be distributed regardless of whether or not they have a Will. When a person dies without a valid will, Ontario's Succession Law Reform Act sets out how the estate is going to be distributed. • According to the Act, unless someone who is financially dependent on the deceased person makes a claim, the first $200,000 is given to the deceased person's spouse if he or she has decided to claim his/her entitlement. The other possibility is to claim half of the net family property. A lawyer can help determine which is the better choice. • Anything over $200,000 is shared between the spouse and the descendants (e.g. children, grandchildren) according to specific rules. • If there is no spouse, the deceased person's children will inherit the estate. If any of them have died, that child's descendants (e.g. the deceased person's grandchildren) will inherit their shar

When a person dies with a will, the estate is normally distributed according to the directions in the will, once the funeral and burial expenses and any debts have been paid. What you want to happen will happen if there is a valid Will in place.