03 Jul Make sure you don’t accidentally revoke your Will at the altar!
Did you know that you could have your Will revoked by marriage?
In other words, if you sign a Will today that gives everything to your common law spouse, then you get married tomorrow, your Will will be revoked on the day you get married.
However, you can avoid this from happening by stating in your Will that it was made in contemplation of marriage.
Why is your Will revoked by marriage?
Let’s say you are a bachelor and you leave everything to Mom. If you were to get married and then later die, your Will would leave nothing to your new spouse.
The intent of the law on this question is to prevent surviving spouses from being unduly impoverished by the death of their spouse.
So, that Will that left everything to Mom? Well, it gets thrown out, and your surviving spouse is given certain entitlements to your estate, including the first $200,000.00 of your estate. Sorry Mom!
Saying “I do” revokes your Will at the altar, unless you make “altar-nate” arrangements.
Has it been a while since you updated your Will? More information is available through the Ministry of the Attorney General of Ontario, and if you have any questions we’re here to help.