What Happens
To Your Will If You Get Married/Divorced?
By Anthony Pranata, Barristers & Solicitors
October 15, 2013
This post will focus on
two questions:
- What happens to my Will if I get married/enter into an adult interdependent partner relationship (ex. common law relationship)?
- What happens to my Will if I get divorced/terminate an AIP relationship?
Prior to February 2012, getting
married or entering into an AIP relationship would have normally revoked your
Will. This sometimes yielded undesirable results. For example, if you had a
valid Will, then got married, and then passed away before making a new Will,
you would have died without a Will.
Also prior to February
2012, getting divorced or terminating an AIP relationship had no effect on your
Will. This also yielded undesirable results at times. For example, if you were
married and you created a Will where you left everything to your spouse, then
divorced, and then you passed away before changing your Will, you would have
died leaving everything to your ex-spouse.
The answer to the above
questions changed in February 2012 when the Alberta government consolidated
several statutes and enacted the Wills
and Succession Act of Alberta.
Under the Wills and Succession Act:
- Getting married/entering into an AIP
relationship DOES NOT REVOKE your current Will.
- Getting divorced/terminating an AIP
relationship DOES NOT REVOKE your current Will, but DOES REVOKE any gift
or interest in property that you give to your ex-partner in your Will. The
exception to this rule is if a court of law finds that you clearly
intended to give that gift or interest in property to your ex-partner
despite the divorce/termination of the AIP relationship.
For more information, please
contact the law office of Courtney Aarbo Fuldauer LLP, Lawyers at:
Address: 3rd Floor, 1131
Kensington Road NW, Calgary, AB, T2N 3P4
Phone: (403)
571-5120
Anthony Pranata
Barrister & Solicitor
