Helpful articles on wills and succession law.
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The average Canadian has around 100 online accounts, but only four provinces give an executor a clear right to access them. Digital legacy law, platform rules, crypto, and what to put in your will, with the Canadian data.
21.06.2026A palliative nurse recorded the top five regrets of the dying, and Canadian research on dignity and end-of-life care backs up what matters at the end: meaning, relationships, and affairs in order. The studies, the numbers, and what they mean.
21.06.2026One-person households are now the most common type in Canada, 42 percent of those aged 85 and over live alone, and more than half of seniors report loneliness. The data on dying alone, social isolation, and why a will and named executor matter most.
21.06.2026About 5 percent of Canadian seniors live below the official poverty line, but single seniors and older women face far higher rates. The data on senior poverty, pensions in CAD, the gender gap, and what it means for modest estates.
21.06.2026A basic room in an Ontario long-term care home costs about $2,085 a month out of pocket, and private retirement homes run $3,500 to $6,000 or more. The data on care costs in CAD, who pays, and how it erodes an estate.
21.06.2026Half of Canadians have no will, a roughly $1 trillion wealth transfer is under way, and estate litigation is rising. The data on inheritance disputes in Canada: who fights, why, what it costs, and how a clear will prevents most of it.
21.06.2026Most Canadian adults do not have an up-to-date will, around 327,000 people die in Canada each year, and roughly $1 trillion is set to change hands in the coming decade. Over 30 sourced statistics on wills, inheritance and estates in Canada from Statistics Canada, the OECD and national surveys.
21.06.2026Estimates of a typical Canadian inheritance range from about $180,000 historically to expectations of $300,000 or more, while Canada heads into a roughly $1 trillion wealth transfer. The numbers, who inherits, at what age, and why the average is misleading.
21.06.2026Life expectancy at birth in Canada is about 81.7 years, roughly 79.5 years for men and 84 years for women. At age 65 a Canadian can expect around 20 more years. The trend, the provincial gap and healthy life years, with Statistics Canada and OECD figures.
21.06.2026A funeral in Canada averages around $7,800, but a full burial can run from $9,000 to $20,000 while a simple cremation can cost under $1,500. Burial versus cremation, a cost breakdown, regional variation and who pays.
21.06.2026The median net worth of Canadian households is $519,700, rising to $873,400 for those aged 55 to 64. Net worth by age, the homeowner-renter divide, the share held in real estate, and why this is the wealth that estates pass on.
21.06.2026Only about 35 percent of Canadians have an up-to-date will, and 51 percent have none at all. The share by age, by province, the reasons people give for not making one, and the trend, with figures from national surveys.
21.06.2026A holographic will is handwritten, signed, and needs no witnesses. It is valid in most Canadian provinces but not in British Columbia or Prince Edward Island. Province-by-province table, requirements, copy-by-hand templates, and the mistakes that void it.
21.06.2026Five ready-to-use will templates for common Canadian situations: married with children, single, blended family, leaving a gift to charity, and parents of minor children. Each is built to be copied out by hand as a holographic will.
21.06.2026Canada has no forced heirship, so you can leave anyone out of your will. But dependants' relief laws let a court order support for a spouse or dependant who was not adequately provided for, and Quebec adds family patrimony and a support claim against the estate.
21.06.2026When you die without a will (intestate), provincial law decides who inherits. The spouse usually receives a preferential share first, then the rest is split with the children. Rules and amounts by province, with a comparison table.
21.06.2026A practical, step-by-step guide to writing a valid will in Canada: choosing the type, listing your assets and beneficiaries, naming an executor and guardian, the wording to use, signing rules, and how to store and update it.
21.06.2026Quebec recognizes three forms of will: notarial, witnessed, and holograph. The notarial will is self-proving and needs no probate. How each works, what they cost, and when a lawyer-drafted or notarial will is worth it over a handwritten one. Comparison table.
21.06.2026