Wills and Estate Planning
Let's be honest—thinking about what happens after you're gone isn't anyone's idea of fun. Planning your estate, writing a will, or deciding who gets your stuff can feel heavy. And if you’re like most people, you’ve probably thought, “I’ll get to it later.” But the truth is, later can sneak up faster than we think.
I tell my wife and kids every time I leave the house that I love them, just in case I can’t do it again. The same thought process should be applied to your estate plan.
Here’s the good news: creating a will and putting your estate in order doesn’t have to be a stressful or complicated ordeal. In fact, with proper guidance, it can be surprisingly straightforward and give you a sense of relief you didn’t know you needed. And at Lange Law, we’re here to make that happen. Reach out to us, and let’s start the conversation.
Let me answer the most basic question: “Do I need a Will?”
You do not need to have a Will. If you do not have a Will, your spouse will inherit your estate. If your spouse has passed away or you are no longer spouses, then your kids would inherit. Things get a little more complex depending on how complicated your life is. For instance, suppose you are on a second marriage, you have kids from the first marriage, and you died without a Will. Your spouse would first get one-half of the estate or $50,000.00, whichever is more, then one-half of anything left. Your children would share the rest. This might not be what you want.
Although I am saying you don’t need a Will, a better question is should you have a Will? It is kind of like exercise. Do I need to exercise? No, clearly, because I haven’t for a long time. Should I exercise? According to my doctor, my wife, my scale, and likely my health, I should exercise. In the same way, you should have a Will.
I will use my situation to illustrate the value of a Will. I am on my first marriage (my wife says if I keep calling it my “first marriage” I will soon be working on my second marriage) and we have 4 children, 11 and under. I am not concerned with who will get my stuff, it will be my wife, then my kids, but if my wife and I should die, who will raise my 4 kids? Whoever I ask to be the guardian, how will they afford to raise my 4 kids, because trust me, it is a lot of kids. Minors cannot receive money from an estate till they turn 18, so who will hold on to the money until then? I am also concerned with my kids getting a large amount of money at such a young age. I don’t know what you were like at 18 but in my case, I am sure my local bar would have received a fair amount of any inheritance I would have received at that time.
A Will allows me to express my choice of who will raise my kids. I named someone I trust to control the money (the Trustee) and make good decisions with it until my kids are old enough to receive the money, which I set at 25 years old. I set up a monthly income for my kids’ guardians so that my kids will not be a financial burden on them.
We all take care of our loved ones during our lives. I did my Will because I had to figure out how I would care for my loved ones if I died, which, if I don’t start exercising, will be sooner than I like.
Your situation might be different from mine, but when deciding to create a Will, I asked myself the following: If I died, how would I care for the people who will miss me?
Ask yourself a similar question, then ask whether you should have a Will?
The purpose of a Power of Attorney is to appoint someone to make financial decisions on your behalf. In the context of estate planning, the purpose of a Power of Attorney is to name someone who will take control of your affairs and take care of you if you can’t take care of yourself, usually because of a mental infirmity.
This might be surprising, but it is my advice that setting up a Power of Attorney is more important than creating a Will, for people of all ages. In the case of a Will, the law sets out what most people will want to happen (give my things to my spouse, then my kids, etc.) but there is no default position regarding Power of Attorney. If I was in a car accident and became mentally infirmed, my wife would need to make a court application to be appointed my committee in order to deal with my affairs. Aside from the initial setup cost, which is in the thousands, such as process involves ongoing obligations to report to the courts, incurring additional legal costs. That is in addition to the stress that my wife is now under because her husband needs to be cared for, more than normal that is.
Setting up a Power of Attorney, gives you control over this process and peace of mind that should something happen, those who want to care for you can care for you in the easiest way possible.
The Public Guardian and Trustee Website provides an information booklet on Power of Attorney’s which offers great information. (https://www.gov.mb.ca/publictrustee/pdf/power_of_attorney_guidebook.pdf)
A Health Care Directive is the legal document you prepare to name someone to make a health care decision for you. Generally, this is how you name the person you want to make the choice to pull the plug on you in the hospital.
The Manitoba government has produced a standard form that is concise and works great. (https://www.gov.mb.ca/health/livingwill.html)
In a lot of situations, I advise you to simply use this form. Where I can provide you value in this area is when you have specific health care wishes, but do not want to leave that decision to your proxy. It is not that you think the person you have named will not follow your wishes, but that you don’t want them to have to make that choice. For example, if you do not want to be provided medical treatment when that medical treatment is not likely to save your life but only prolong your life for a short period of time, that can be a very hard thing for a child to decide regarding a parent. Even if they follow your instructions, what does that do to your child and their ability to grieve or their mental health?
In those situations, I will draft up a health care directive taking that choice away from your proxy but leaving all other health care decisions to them.
Check out this link to see the interview form I go over with clients in an initial meeting. Not everything on the form is relevant and there could be things that are relevant but not included. However, the form gives you an idea of what we will discuss.
Estate planning fees can vary a lot depending on how tangled your life is. If your situation is simple—great! The fees will reflect that. But if things are a bit more complex (second marriage, kids from different relationships, multiple assets), the cost might be a little higher. Want a better idea of what you're looking at? Check out our fee schedule and get a clearer picture!