This slideshare presentation discusses the consequences of passing away without a will, or intestate, within the province of Ontario.

1. Intestacy
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Intestacy: General
• If a person dies without leaving a valid Last Will and Testament, he
or she is said to have died "intestate“
• When people die intestate, their wishes do not have any bearing
on how their assets will be distributed among surviving family
members
• In Ontario, the Succession Law Reform Act ("SLRA") directs how
an estate is to be distributed on "intestacy"

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The Prevalence of Intestacy
• According to a 2013 survey by LawPRO, 56% of adult Canadians do
not have a Last Will and Testament
• In addition to this figure, some Wills may not be valid by reason of lack
of mental capacity at the time at which the Will is executed, non-
compliance with formal requirements, lack of knowledge and approval
of the contents of the Will, or because the document was procured by
undue influence
• When a person dies and the original copy of a Will cannot be located,
it may be presumed that it was revoked by the physical destruction of
the document
• If a person dies leaving an invalid Will or the circumstances suggest
that his or her Will was effectively revoked, the intestacy provisions of
the SLRA will apply

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Preferential Shares
• If a person who has died intestate in Ontario is survived by a
married spouse, the surviving spouse will be entitled to a
preferential share prior to the distribution of the remaining assets
between the spouse and any children surviving the deceased
• In Ontario, the amount of the preferential share is currently
$200,000.00

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Distribution to Spouses and/or Children
• Following the payment of the preferential share to a surviving
spouse, the estate of a person who dies intestate and is survived
by a spouse and children will be distributed as follows:
– If there is only one child, 1/2 to the spouse and 1/2 to the child
– If there are two or more children, 1/3 to the spouse and 2/3 to the
children
• If the intestate is survived by a spouse and no children, the entire
estate will be left to a spouse
• If the intestate is survived by children and no spouse, the entire
estate will be distributed between the surviving children

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Distribution to Other Family Members
• If the intestate is not survived by a spouse or any children, the
estate will be passed on and divided among the members of the
next group of individuals most closely related to the deceased, in
the following order:
– Parents;
– Siblings;
– Nieces and nephews;
– Other closest living relatives

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Thank you for reading!