Offices in Ottawa and Perth
(613) 722-1500

CONTACT US (613) 722-1500

Wills, Trusts and Estates

Living Wills

Many people are familiar with a Last Will and Testament and Powers of Attorney but a common area of confusion is understanding the differences between a Will and a Living Will. Put simply, a Last Will and Testament is a document which states how you intend to deal with your assets and property and outlines your wishes for the care and guardianship of any minor children after you pass away. In contrast, a Living Will is often a schedule to a Power of Attorney for Personal Care and states your personal wishes concerning medical treatments while you are still alive (but unable to express these wishes due to incapacity).

A Living Will gives guidance to the person you have appointed under Power of Attorney for Personal Care to assist the attorney in making care decisions and may outline your health care preferences while you are still living, but incapable of making those decisions.  It will ensure your attorney in making these decisions is aware of what treatments you do or do not want. Some decisions that arise when crafting a Living Will include choosing whether or not you would like to be kept on life support if there is no hope of recovery and what level of care and support you would like to receive if you become unconscious or a severe accident occurs which may render you incapable of making such care decisions. A Living Will tends to be limited to medical wishes regarding a terminal illness, an injury, or permanent unconsciousness.

Connect with our Team

Offices in Ottawa and Perth     (613) 722-1500

Related Service Areas

Estate Administration And Planning
Estate Litigation
Guardianship Applications
Powers Of Attorney
Preparing Wills And Estate Planning
Probate Applications
Trusts

More Resources

Blog |
Business Law
By: 

Posted September 25, 2023

This is the second blog addressing the new requirement for private Ontario corporations to maintain a register of individuals with significant control over the corporation[...]
Blog |
Estate Litigation
By: 

Posted September 11, 2023

Losing a loved one is never easy and dealing with the administration of their estate can be a challenging and complex process, no matter the[...]
Blog |
Construction Law
By: 

Posted September 7, 2023

As detailed in another post, Ontario’s Construction Act creates a scheme for the quick resolution of construction disputes via an “interim adjudication”. However, there has[...]
Blog |
Commercial Litigation
By: 

Posted August 29, 2023

Specific performance refers to the Court-ordered remedy that the parties must proceed with completing a real estate transaction. The recent Court of Appeal decision of[...]
Blog |
Estate Litigation
By: 

Posted August 22, 2023

A will is a legal document that outlines a testator’s wishes for the distribution of their property after they die. Section 4(2) of the Succession[...]
Blog |
Business Law
By: 

Posted August 15, 2023

Throughout their small business journey, sole proprietors need to wear a wide variety of hats. On any given day, they can be all at once[...]

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
Consent*
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.