Do it yourself or hire a lawyer?
We are often asked if it is possible to do the legal work in real estate transactions and the preparation of wills.
While it is possible to do some of the work of buying and selling a home yourself, only a lawyer can register the deed and the mortgage.
In the same way as you are wiser to enlist real estate professionals than trying to do all the work yourself, a lawyer will take the legal worry out of your transactions. Our role is to make the home buying experience as pleasant as possible, and let you worry about things like what kind of flowers you will plant in your garden.
As for wills and power of attorney, it is possible, at least in theory, to do it yourself. However, the vast majority of people lead more complex lives than they appreciate, and the chance of something going wrong with your wishes is very high. For the relatively low cost of a properly done will, it’s an investment in peace of mind and assurance that your intentions will be carried out.
Services
Wills
Our ServicesOur law office arranges a meeting lasting between fifty minutes and two hours. This is first to clarify your intentions and, secondly, to underline those issues which should be expressed in a legal document.
The purpose of this section is to give our readers information about the services our
lawyers offer in relation to the three following legal documents:
• Wills and Mutual Wills;
• Power of Attorney for property;
• Power of Attorney for personal care.
A. WILL
This legal document is prepared with your cooperation so we can give maximum attention to your priorities. It is common to find in such a document:
1. the mention of particular bequest and residual bequest;
2. the appointment of principal executors and their replacements in case of incapacity to act;
3. the appointment of a guardian for persons who have not yet reached the age of majority;
4. the expression of preferences in relation to funeral care, if requested.
Mutual Wills
When two individuals require the same service and the second will is a mere reflection of the first, it is then possible, in certain circumstances, to consider these two wills as mutual. The fee reflects both the reduction of work to state the testator’s and testatrix’s wishes, (male/female person for whom the will is prepared) as well as less time necessary for signing the documents.
B. POWER OF ATTORNEY FOR PROPERTY
This is a document by which you give special powers to an individual of your choice to allow this person to act on your behalf, given the occurrence of specific circumstances or at any given time.
We recommend planning for the appointment of substitute attorneys, who can act as replacements for the first person, if necessary.
This first power of attorney pertains to your goods only, be it chattels (items you own) or real estate, and does not affect decisions taken in your name in health care matters.
Once again, this power of attorney is said to be mutual if it is prepared by two persons with mutual intentions, in which case the two documents prepared are the reflection of one another.
C. POWER OF ATTORNEY FOR PERSONAL CARE
This power of attorney relates to the health care provided to you. It identifies particularly the person who has the right to consent to medical care provided to you, assuming that you are incapable of making such decisions on your own.
It is said to be mutual for the same reasons as those mentioned above.
Our Services
Our law office arranges a meeting lasting between fifty minutes and two hours. This is first to clarify your intentions and, secondly, to underline those issues which should be expressed in a legal document. We strongly recommend you complete the questionnaire shown on our website, print it and bring it with you to the first meeting.
The person with whom you will be meeting will discuss your intentions and will invite you to pick up the draft documents that result (average is three days) so you can review them for accuracy before signing. It is also during this meeting that a tentative date is determined for the final meeting in order to sign and finalize everything.
At your convenience, the executed original will is remitted to you, or it is kept by our law office and will be remitted to you or your executor, on request, subject to certain formalities. As a third alternative, it can be deposited with the Court Registrar for safekeeping, in which case a minor fee payable to the Minister of Finance of Ontario applies ($17.00, subject to change). Moreover, you will receive four notarized copies of your will, and one notarized copy will be kept by our law office.
As for the Powers of Attorney, one original will be prepared; four notarized copies of these documents will be remitted to you, and one notarized copy will be kept by us. This allows you to keep your original documents while distributing an official copy of the same to your Power of Attorney.
FINAL STEPS
A specific process must be followed for the signing of your documents. Therefore, we invite you to set aside some forty-five minutes for this second appointment. This will provide you with the opportunity to ask your questions and will permit us to enter the name(s) of the person(s) acting as witness(es) for the occasion.
As for the means of payment, we invite you to discuss with our lawyers the way you prefer to pay your obligations. Currently, we accept cash and cheques.
