As the year gets underway, many people turn their attention to things they know they should address but often put off because they are uncomfortable or easy to avoid. Making a proper last will and testament is frequently near the top of that list. Unfortunately, good intentions alone are often not enough.
Consider a recent and sobering example that came across my desk.
A man we will call “Mr. Goodintentions”, just 55 years old, passed away unexpectedly. He was a successful business owner who had built a financial advisory practice with a net worth of approximately $10 million. Like many people, he believed he had “taken care of it” by using an online will-making service about two years earlier. Unfortunately, that process appears to have failed to prompt him to think through critical contingencies.
Mr. Goodintentions was estranged from his father and had no siblings. His mother therefore seemed like the obvious choice as his sole executor and beneficiary. At the time, she was in her late sixties and, by all accounts, healthy. He did not name an alternate executor or beneficiary.
Tragically, his mother passed away suddenly. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Goodintentions was diagnosed with terminal cancer and given a prognosis of six months to live. Before he could revisit or update his estate plan, he experienced complications that led to an unexpected hospital admission, and he passed away suddenly- well before the timeline predicted by his oncologist.
The result is devastating.
With no surviving spouse, no children, and no siblings, his estate would now, by law, pass to his estranged father under Ontario’s strict rules of intestate succession, if his father is still alive. This is clearly an outcome Mr. Goodintentions would never have wanted. If his father cannot be located, that creates another problem. If it turns out his father also predeceased him, then distant and remote cousins, some of whom may not even know he existed, must now be located to determine who is legally entitled to inherit. Further, a legal representative needs to be appointed to administer the estate and the potential beneficiaries will have to agree as a group who among them should apply to the court to act or which third party should act and that consensus will no doubt be difficult to achieve.
The process will be lengthy, costly, and emotionally draining, and it will significantly diminish the value of the estate he worked a lifetime to build.
This outcome was entirely preventable. A properly drafted will with contingent executors and beneficiaries would have avoided this result.
This story serves as a powerful reminder: estate planning is not just about having a will, it is about having the right will. Proper legal advice, thoughtful contingency planning, and regular updates can spare loved ones from chaos and ensure your intentions are truly carried out.