Do You Really Need a Will?

April 20, 2015 Published by Pollock & Company
Category: Wills and Estates

If you would like to be able to direct as to what will happen to your property when you pass away, then contact Pollock & Company to instruct us to draft your Will. A will outlines who is responsible for looking after your estate after you pass away. It specifies which person(s) are to receive property and/or money. You can also state your wish as to the name of a guardian for your minor children.

If you pass away without a Will, your estate is then divided pursuant to provincial law, which does not always result in the outcome you might wish to see. By having a Will drafted by a lawyer, you are in control over what happens to your property upon death.

We also encourage you as part of your estate plan to have a lawyer at Pollock & Company draft a General Power of Attorney and a Health Care Directive for you. With a General Power of Attorney, you can name someone to act as your attorney to look after your financial affairs either right away or when you are deemed by a medical practitioner to be incapable of doing so on your own. At that time, the Power of Attorney “springs” into effect. A Health Care Directive allows you to name a person or “proxy” to provide medical instructions to a physician or hospital when you are no longer capable of making these decisions on your own. It can also itemize the type of medical treatment you do or do not wish to receive if you cannot communicate these wishes to a health care provider.

Without these documents, you have no control over your personal decisions, estate and property should you become unable to make these decisions on you own. Sound estate planning will give you and your family peace of mind.