A will is not something you sign once and file away. It is a legal document written to match your life at a single moment in time. When that life changes (and it always does), the will does not update itself. It sits exactly as written, sometimes for decades, until someone finally reads it after you are gone.
Under Ontario law, some life events actively change how your existing will operates, whether you meant them to or not. Others simply leave your will out of step with your family, your assets, or your wishes. Either way, the fix is the same: a review with a wills and estates lawyer, ideally soon after the event, not years later.
Knowing when to update your will in Ontario can help ensure your estate plan continues to reflect your current circumstances and wishes. Below are the life events that most often call for an update, and the specific reason each one matters under Ontario law. We’ll also discuss how a wills lawyer in Brampton can help you navigate your situation.
Marriage
Many people assume marriage automatically updates or creates a will.
Before January 1, 2022, marriage in Ontario automatically revoked an existing will (with limited exceptions). If you married before that date and never signed a new will afterward, there is a real chance your old will has already been legally cancelled, leaving you intestate (meaning without a valid will, so Ontario’s default distribution rules would apply instead of your wishes) without realizing it.
Since January 1, 2022, marriage no longer revokes a will. That sounds simpler, but it creates the opposite problem: a will signed before the marriage, naming an ex-partner, a former beneficiary, or simply omitting a new spouse, remains fully valid and enforceable exactly as written. Marrying does not insert your new spouse into an old plan. You have to do that yourself.
Why it warrants an update: Either your old will has already been revoked without your knowledge, or it is still valid but does not reflect your new spouse, your combined assets, or decisions about children from a previous relationship.
If you have recently married, it’s a good time to review your will with a lawyer rather than assume your spouse is automatically protected.
Separation or Divorce
Separation and divorce are treated differently under Ontario law, and the distinction matters more than most people expect.
Since January 1, 2022, separation (not only divorce) can trigger section 17 of the Succession Law Reform Act (SLRA). But “separated” has a specific legal meaning here, and it is narrower than simply living apart. Under the SLRA, spouses are only treated as separated for this purpose if, before the death:
- they lived separate and apart as a result of the breakdown of the marriage for a period of three years immediately before the death; or
- they signed a valid separation agreement; or
- a court order or family arbitration award settled their rights and obligations arising from the breakdown of the marriage.
If none of these has happened yet, for example, a couple who separated eight months ago with no agreement and no court order, the spouse is not yet legally “separated” for the purposes of section 17. Any gift to that spouse, or their appointment as executor, remains fully valid and enforceable under the existing will. Once one of the three triggers above is met, the will is read as though that spouse had predeceased you, and any gift or appointment in their favour is automatically revoked. Divorce has long had a similar, immediate effect.
This also is not retroactive: it only applies to separations that occurred on or after January 1, 2022.
This protects against an outcome no one really wants: dying separated, with an old will still in place, and everything you own automatically going to a spouse you no longer share a life with. That much is a genuine safeguard. But the safeguard only removes the separated spouse; it does not replace them with anyone else, so it can leave a significant hole in your estate plan rather than actually fixing it. If your will named your spouse as sole beneficiary and estate trustee, and that provision is automatically revoked on separation, the will may be left with no effective plan at all for a significant part of your estate. Depending on how the will was drafted, this can trigger a partial intestacy for the affected share, meaning that portion of the estate is distributed under the province’s default formula, as though no will existed for that share, instead of your instructions.
This is why separation and wills in Ontario should be reviewed together rather than assuming the law has taken care of everything for you.
Why it warrants an update: The law gives you a safety net, not a plan. If you have not yet hit one of the three legal triggers, your separated spouse is still fully entitled under your existing will, whatever your actual intentions are. If you have hit a trigger, the automatic revocation protects you from an unintended gift, but it does not name a new beneficiary, executor, or guardian in that spouse’s place. Either way, the safest step after any separation is a new will, not a wait-and-see approach.
Birth or Adoption of a Child
A new child changes what your will needs to accomplish, not just who it names.
Wills drafted before children are born rarely include the provisions a young family actually needs: a named guardian, a testamentary trust that holds a minor’s inheritance until a specified age rather than releasing it at 18, and clear instructions for how multiple children are to be treated if the family later grows.
If you welcomed a child through birth or adoption, reviewing your will should be an important part of your estate planning life events checklist.
Why it warrants an update: Without a named guardian, the question of who raises your children if both parents die can end up before the court, decided by a judge rather than by you. Without a trust structure, a young beneficiary is legally entitled to a lump sum at age 18, an outcome most parents would not choose.
Buying a Home, Starting a Business, or a Significant Change in Assets
A will written when your estate consisted of a bank account and a car does not necessarily hold up once real estate, a business, or a meaningful investment portfolio enters the picture.
Larger or more complex estates raise issues a simple will may not address: how jointly held property is treated, how a business interest is valued and transferred, and how probate planning (including the use of multiple wills to reduce the Estate Administration Tax on certain assets) can be structured. These strategies only work if they are built into the will itself.
Why it warrants an update: The right structure, applied while you are drafting or amending your will, can meaningfully reduce delay, tax, and complications for your executor. Applied after the fact, none of it is available.
Death of an Executor, Guardian, or Beneficiary Named in the Will
A will is only as functional as the people named in it. If your named estate trustee, guardian, or a significant beneficiary predeceases you and no alternate has been properly named in the will, the gap does not fill itself. Your estate plan won’t automatically adjust to the death of someone you named in your will.
Why it warrants an update: Courts can appoint a replacement estate trustee if none is named, but that process takes time, costs money, and puts the decision in someone else’s hands rather than yours.
A New Common-Law Relationship
Ontario’s intestacy rules do not recognize common-law partners in the same way as legally married spouses. If you die without a will, a common-law partner, regardless of how many years you lived together, inherits nothing automatically under the Succession Law Reform Act. They would be left to pursue a dependant’s support claim or an unjust enrichment claim through the courts, with no guaranteed outcome.
Why it warrants an update: If you have a common-law partner and want them provided for, a will is not optional. It is the only way Ontario law recognizes the relationship for inheritance purposes.
Moving to a Different Province or Country
A will made in Ontario does not simply stop working if you move away. Ontario law recognizes a will as formally valid if it meets the requirements of any one of several connected places, including where it was made, where you considered your permanent home, or where you were living at the time. Real property is treated differently: land is governed by the law of wherever it is physically located, not by the terms of your Ontario will. That distinction matters most when you move outside Canada, where property division rules, forced-heirship laws, and probate procedures can look nothing like Ontario’s.
Why it warrants an update: A cross-border or cross-provincial review confirms your will is still valid where you now live and that any foreign property is properly accounted for.
A Change in Health or Capacity
This event is different from the others: it is often the one where people wait too long. A will only takes effect after death. It does nothing to protect you while you are alive but unable to manage your own affairs.
A Continuing Power of Attorney for Property and a Power of Attorney for Personal Care need to be signed while you still have the legal capacity to sign them. Once capacity is lost, it is too late, and your family is left applying to the court for guardianship under the Substitute Decisions Act instead.
Why it warrants an update: A diagnosis, a decline in health, or simply getting older is the signal to have both powers of attorney reviewed or put in place, alongside your will, before the option to do so closes.
How Often Should You Review a Will Even Without a Major Event?
Even without a triggering event, most estate lawyers recommend a general review every three to five years. Laws change (as the 2022 amendments to the SLRA demonstrate), family relationships shift gradually, and beneficiary designations on RRSPs, TFSAs, and life insurance can drift out of sync with the will over time, since those designations override the will entirely.
You don’t necessarily need a major life event before reviewing your will. If you’re unsure when to update your will, you can discuss your situation with a trusted Wills and Estates lawyer in Ontario.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does getting married automatically update my will in Ontario?
No. Since January 1, 2022, marriage neither revokes nor updates an existing will. A will signed before the marriage remains valid and enforceable exactly as written, unless it is formally amended.
Does separating from my spouse cancel my will?
It does not cancel the whole will, and it does not happen the moment you start living apart. Since January 1, 2022, a gift or appointment favouring your spouse is only revoked once one of three things happens: three years of living separate and apart, a valid separation agreement, or a court order or arbitration award settling the separation. Before that point, your spouse remains fully entitled under the existing will. After that point, the rest of the will remains valid, which can leave unintended gaps.
Do I need a new will every time something changes, or can I just amend the old one?
Minor changes can sometimes be made through a formal codicil, but many life events (marriage, separation, a new child, a significant change in assets) are significant enough that a lawyer will usually recommend a new will to avoid ambiguity between old and amended provisions.
What happens if I never update my will after a divorce?
Any gift or appointment favouring your former spouse is revoked by law. However, if that leaves a gap the rest of the will does not address, the affected portion of your estate can be distributed under Ontario’s intestacy rules instead of your wishes.
Is a will enough, or do I also need powers of attorney?
A will only takes effect after death. To protect yourself while alive, you also need a Continuing Power of Attorney for Property and a Power of Attorney for Personal Care, both of which must be signed while you have capacity.
Keep Your Will Up to Date as Your Life Changes
Life moves faster than most people update their paperwork. If you have recently married, separated, welcomed a child, bought property, or experienced any other significant change, the safest step is a review with a lawyer who can confirm exactly what your current will does, and does not, say.
GS Brar Law helps Brampton and Ontario families keep their wills, trusts, and powers of attorney up to date through every stage of life. Visit our Wills and Estates page to learn more, or contact us at 1-905-291-3297 to schedule a review.
