The documents that govern what happens to your property, your children, and your medical decisions — drafted with the clarity that protects your family when it matters most.
A complete estate plan in Ontario rests on three documents: a valid will, a Continuing Power of Attorney for Property, and a Power of Attorney for Personal Care. Prepared together, they determine who inherits your estate, who manages your finances if you become incapable, and who makes healthcare decisions if you cannot speak for yourself.
Avion Law prepares these documents as a coordinated engagement. We take the time to understand your family, your assets, and your concerns — and we draft documents that actually reflect those particulars, rather than populating a template.
Drafting of primary and secondary wills where tax-effective dual-will planning is appropriate, appointment of estate trustees, creation of testamentary trusts, and clear disposition of specific and residual gifts.
Continuing Powers of Attorney for Property and Powers of Attorney for Personal Care, with conditions, restrictions, and successor attorneys drafted to your circumstances.
Applications for Certificates of Appointment of Estate Trustee (with or without a will), including the Estate Information Return required of the estate trustee.
Guidance to estate trustees through the full administration: asset identification, debts and taxes, interim and final accounts, and distribution to beneficiaries.
Advice to beneficiaries on their entitlements, on the accounts presented by estate trustees, and on the steps available where estate administration has not been properly conducted.
Where a will is contested, dependant support is sought, or an estate trustee is challenged, referral to experienced estate litigation counsel with continuing involvement from our office.
Legal opinion letters for the Ontario Ministry of Transportation where a family member has died without a will and the family needs to transfer a vehicle without going through the full cost and delay of a probate application.
The formal requirements for a valid Ontario will are found in the Succession Law Reform Act. In general, a will must be in writing, signed at its end by the testator, and witnessed by two individuals who are present with the testator at the same time. A holograph will — a will wholly in the testator's own handwriting and signed by the testator — is also recognized, although we rarely recommend it.
"A will is not valid unless… it is in writing… signed at its end by the testator or by some other person in his or her presence and by his or her direction…" Succession Law Reform Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. S.26, s. 4(1)
Powers of attorney are governed by the Substitute Decisions Act, 1992. A Continuing Power of Attorney for Property authorizes a named attorney to manage your property even after you become mentally incapable — which is precisely when it is most needed. A Power of Attorney for Personal Care authorizes decisions regarding your healthcare, shelter, and personal needs.
Where a person dies without a valid will — intestate — the Succession Law Reform Act sets out a fixed distribution scheme. A surviving spouse receives a preferential share, with the balance divided among the spouse and children in statutory proportions. For most Ontarians, the statutory scheme does not reflect what they actually want to happen. Making a will is the only reliable way to change it.
When a family member dies without a will, a practical problem often arises quickly: there is a vehicle registered in the deceased's name that the family wants to transfer — to the surviving spouse, to an adult child, or for sale. The Ontario Ministry of Transportation, through ServiceOntario, will not re-register the vehicle without proof of the transferee's entitlement. The question becomes: must the family go through the full cost and delay of a probate application to transfer a used car worth a few thousand dollars?
In most cases, the answer is no. The MTO will accept a lawyer's opinion letter in lieu of a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee where the estate is modest and the entitlement is clear. Avion Law prepares these opinion letters as a targeted, flat-fee service. The letter identifies the deceased, confirms the intestacy, sets out the applicant's relationship to the deceased and their entitlement under Part II of the Succession Law Reform Act, confirms that there are no estate debts affecting the vehicle, and authorizes the transfer.
To prepare the letter we need the death certificate, the vehicle ownership document (the green slip), identification of the family member receiving the vehicle, and a brief summary of the family composition so the intestacy analysis is accurate. Most letters can be issued within a few business days once the documents are in hand.