Estate planning
Everything you own will pass to someone. Planning decides whether it does so quickly and privately, or slowly and expensively.
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What happens to everything when I die?
That means the size of your estate is not the same as the amount your family receives. The gap is tax, probate fees, professional costs and time, and every one of those can be reduced with decisions made now rather than discovered later.
What are probate fees in BC and Ontario?
In practical terms, a two million dollar estate faces something near $27,000 in BC and about $29,000 in Ontario. That is before legal and accounting costs, and it is charged on the assets that pass through the estate, which is exactly why the next question matters.
How can my family avoid probate on some assets?
Each route has a catch worth knowing. A designation overrides your will, so a stale form sends money to the wrong person. Joint ownership with an adult child avoids probate but exposes the asset to that child's creditors and divorce, and can trigger tax immediately. We map which assets should pass by designation and which are better left in the estate, then tell your lawyer what to draft. Life insurance is often the cleanest route.
How do I leave things fairly between children in different situations?
The usual tools are insurance to equalise, so the child who does not take the business or the cottage receives cash of matching value, and a trust where a child needs structure rather than a lump sum. What matters most is saying it out loud while you are here. The estates that go badly are almost always the ones where the reasoning was never explained.
Do I need a trust?
Trusts carry setup costs, annual filings and their own tax rules, so we only raise one when the situation calls for it. When it does, your lawyer drafts it and we make sure the assets and insurance line up with it. Business shares are dealt with here.
What does an hour of estate planning save?
An estate planning case study will be added here when the approved figures and story are ready.
See all case studiesProbate and tax figures on this page are current as of September 2026. Rules change, and we review this page whenever they do.
What else should you know?
Do you write wills?
No, a lawyer does that, and we will tell you when you need one. We work out what the plan should achieve, who should receive what and how the tax lands, then give your lawyer clear instructions to draft against.
How often should I update my beneficiaries?
Every time your family changes and at every review otherwise. Beneficiary designations override your will on registered accounts and insurance, which makes an out-of-date designation one of the most expensive small oversights we find.
Is there an inheritance tax in Canada?
No. What happens instead is a deemed disposition: at death you are treated as having sold your assets, and the resulting capital gains are taxed on your final return. Assets passing to a spouse can usually be rolled over and deferred.
What about my business in my estate?
It needs its own plan, because shares in a private company are often the largest asset and the least liquid. Funded buy-sell agreements, key person cover and share structure decide whether your family receives value or a problem.
Can estate planning reduce the tax my family pays?
Often significantly. Choosing which assets pass by designation, holding life insurance to cover the final tax bill, timing gifts and using a spousal rollover all change the final number rather than merely reporting it.
Would your estate pass the way you expect?
Book a complimentary 20-minute assessment and we will check the designations, the probate exposure and the tax.