A will is a written document, either paper or digital, that spells out exactly where you want your possessions to go after you're gone, who will assume guardianship of your children, and more. Think of it as your last gift to your loved ones — a clear set of instructions that ensures they can carry out your final wishes, and that they’ll be taken care of for many years to come.

In this article, we’ll cover the following topics:

• Family property vs. excluded property

• Debt incurred during marriage

• Agreements between spouses during separation proceedings

When a married couple (or a non-married couple who has lived together for at least two years) separates, their shared property is divided according to guidelines set by the Family Law Act of British Columbia.

In this article, we’ll cover the following topics:

- What is an estate freeze?

- When should I freeze my estate?

- What are the tax benefits of an estate freeze?

- Avoiding capital gains upon death

- Income-splitting opportunities

- Multiplying the lifetime capital gain exemption (LCGE)

What is an estate freeze?

An estate freeze allows you to transfer your business to the next generation without incurring immediate capital gains taxes, all while retaining control of the business and maintaining a steady stream of income.

In this article, we’ll cover the following topics:

- The two legal risks of gifts and inheritances

- Divorce settlement

- Providing financial assistance to your children

Divorce Settlement

There are many reasons why a divorce might go from bad to worse. One area that’s particularly prone to get messy is gifts and inheritances – shorthand for assets gifted to a single family member by a third party.

5 Ways To Protect Your Family Financially in Case of Unexpected Passing

Family Estate Planning

Estate planning is so important, yet it is overlooked by many because it may be viewed as being challenging and complicated and bringing about morbid thoughts. However, one of the smartest things you can do is to leave all of your affairs in order so that there is no uncertainty or tough decisions to be made by your loved ones. When undertaking the process of Family Estate Planning, there are some strategies that can be used in order to reduce the financial impact on your estate following your death.

1.Have a Will in place

Family Trusts | What Is It & How Do They Work?

A family trust is a structure that facilitates the distribution of wealth to the beneficiaries named in the trust. Typically, your children, grandchildren, spouses are named as beneficiaries.

How does it work?

A trust agreement will set out a trustee and name one or more beneficiaries of the trust. A trustee is responsible for distributing the assets held within the trust, and typically has wide and even absolute discretion to determine who receives what, and when. A beneficiary may receive distributions from the trust, but they do not have a legal entitlement to those funds, which shores up the level of control that can be exercised over the trust funds.If you have more money than you need to live on during your lifetime, then you can give the funds to your children outright as a gift - but then you wouldn’t have any control over what they do with the funds. That’s ok for some people, but if you want to retain control over when those funds are used, a family trust can allow you to put aside funds for them and allow you to control when those funds are actually distributed to them - if at all. This can be helpful if you have, for example, a disabled child or a child that you don’t trust to use the funds wisely.

What Happens If You Die Without a Will? | 3 Important Things You Need to Know

3 important things you to know about the importance of having a Will.

1) Common Scenarios

- The first thing to know about dying without a will is that the distribution of your estate is, of course, going to be very unclear. The default rules of the Wills Estates and Succession Acts are going to apply and so I'm going to cover off some of the common scenarios here.