Do You Need a Lawyer to Make a Will in Ontario?

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What the law says

You do not need a lawyer to make a valid will in Ontario. The Succession Law Reform Act (the SLRA), which sets the rules for wills, does not require a lawyer to draft or sign one, and calls for a legal professional as a witness in only one case, described below. A will is valid if it is in writing, signed at the end by you, and signed in front of two witnesses who are present together and then sign it themselves, or if it is written wholly in your own handwriting and signed by you.

The Ontario government says the same thing in plainer terms. Its estate planning guidance lists three ways to prepare your own will: an online tool, a will kit, or a handwritten will, called a holograph will. It notes that these methods can cost little or nothing, and it warns that a will prepared incorrectly will not be valid, which can lead to family disputes, lawsuits and delays after a death.

There is one narrow place where the SLRA does call for a legal professional. If your witnesses join you by video instead of in person, section 4(3)(a) requires at least one of them to be a licensee of the Law Society of Ontario, as explained in can you sign a will by video in Ontario. For an in-person signing, any two suitable adults can witness.

So the real question is not whether you are allowed to make your own will. It is whether your will is likely to work the way you intend. The signing rules are covered in what makes a will valid in Ontario. This page compares the routes, and our estate planning overview shows how a will fits with the rest of a plan.

Three ways to make a will, compared fairly

Each route can produce a valid will. They differ in who carries the risk of a mistake, and in what they leave out.

Will kit or online tool, handwritten will and lawyer-drafted will
Point	Will kit or online tool	Handwritten (holograph) will	Lawyer-drafted will
Allowed in Ontario	Yes	Yes	Yes
Who writes it	You, using a template	You, wholly by hand	A lawyer, from your instructions
Witnesses	Two, present together (SLRA s. 4(2))	None (SLRA s. 6)	Two, usually arranged by the lawyer
Cost	Low or no cost, says Ontario’s guidance	Low or no cost	A professional fee; ask for a quote first
Where it often goes wrong	Signing without proper witnesses; blanks filled in by hand mistaken for a holograph will	Typed or printed parts; additions below the signature; unclear wording	Information you did not share; a plan not updated after life changes
Trusts, guardians, business shares, tax	Limited to what the template covers	Only what you think to write	Tailored, with advice on tax and other issues
Storage	Up to you	Up to you	A lawyer can store it securely, Ontario’s guidance notes
At probate	Affidavit of execution, Form 74D	Affidavit of handwriting, Form 74F	Affidavit of execution, Form 74D, often sworn at signing

For a single adult with a home, some savings and adult children who will share equally, a properly signed kit can do the job. The trouble is that a kit cannot tell you when your situation is not simple, and the person who discovers the problem is your estate trustee, after you have died. Ontario’s guidance describes what a lawyer adds: answering your questions, raising tax and other issues, making sure the will meets the legal requirements, and storing it where your family can find it. When we prepare wills and powers of attorney, that is the work the fee pays for. If you want the handwritten route, read is a handwritten will valid in Ontario first.

How to make a will that holds up, whichever route you choose

List what you own and how it is held. Ontario’s guidance points out that jointly owned property usually passes to the surviving owner, and that life insurance and registered plans can name their own beneficiaries. Those assets may never pass through your will.
Choose an estate trustee and an alternate. The guidance suggests thinking about the person’s age, time, ability to manage money and location, and notes that an estate trustee living outside Ontario might have to post a bond when applying for probate.
Decide who receives what, including backups. Say what happens if a beneficiary dies before you.
Name someone to care for any minor children. Section 61 of the Children’s Law Reform Act lets you appoint a person by will.
Sign it correctly. Two independent adult witnesses for a typed or kit will, present together. Neither a witness nor a witness’s spouse should receive anything under the will, because section 12(1) of the SLRA makes such a gift void.
Get an affidavit of execution sworn. A witness’s Form 74D affidavit is what the court asks for later under Rule 74.04, and it is easier to get on signing day.
Store the original and tell your estate trustee where it is. You can deposit it with the Superior Court of Justice under section 2 of the Estates Act.
Make powers of attorney at the same time. A will does nothing while you are alive. Ontario’s power of attorney guidance covers both documents.

When the risk of doing it yourself rises

Ontario’s own guidance flags complicated situations. It names owning a business as an example where you may want to speak to an accountant or financial advisor as well, and its power of attorney page suggests talking to a lawyer if you run or own a business, have a difficult family situation, or own property in another province or country. These are the situations where the risk is highest.

You own a business

Shares in a private corporation are often a large part of an owner’s estate. How they pass, who controls the company in the meantime, and whether a secondary will for private company shares fits your plan are questions a kit does not ask. Your will also has to work with any agreement you have with your co-owners, which is why we look at shareholders’ agreements alongside it.

You have a blended family

Your spouse may not be bound by your will. Under section 6 of the Family Law Act, a surviving married spouse can choose between what the will gives and an equalization entitlement, and must file that choice within six months. Separately, Part V of the SLRA lets the court order support from an estate for dependants who were not adequately provided for (section 58), and a “child” there includes a person you treated as a child of your family (section 57). A will that leaves everything to your own children, or everything to your spouse, needs to be written with these rules in mind. Disputes, if they come, need separate advice.

You have minor children

Two things trip people up. First, an appointment of someone to care for your children under section 61 of the Children’s Law Reform Act needs that person’s consent and expires 90 days after it takes effect unless they apply to court within that time. Second, a child’s inheritance is not simply handed to the other parent. Ontario’s guidance explains that a child’s money is generally paid into court with the Accountant of the Superior Court of Justice until the child reaches the required age (usually 18), unless, in most cases, the total is $35,000 or less, or a court-appointed guardian of property receives it. A trust in your will can avoid that, as our trusts page explains.

You own property outside Ontario

Under section 36(1) of the SLRA, the validity and effect of a will, as it relates to land, are governed by the law of the place where the land is. A will that is fine for your Richmond Hill house may not work for a condo in another province or a home overseas.

A beneficiary receives ODSP

The Ontario Disability Support Program has asset limits. Under section 27(1) of O. Reg. 222/98, the basic limit for a single person is $40,000. Section 28 excludes some assets, including a beneficial interest in a trust funded by an inheritance or life insurance and available for maintenance, but section 28(3) caps that exclusion, together with the cash surrender value of life insurance, at $100,000. A direct gift in a do-it-yourself will can push a beneficiary over the limit. Ontario’s guidance mentions trusts for an adult who may not be able to manage money, and this is where planning matters most.

Example

For example, imagine two neighbours in Aurora. Helen is a widow with a paid-off townhouse, savings and two adult daughters she wants to treat equally. She buys a will kit, names one daughter as estate trustee and the other as alternate, and signs it with two neighbours who receive nothing. Her will is valid and does what she wants.

Next door, Kevin owns half of a small manufacturing company, has a second wife, a son from his first marriage who receives ODSP, and a cottage in Quebec. A kit leaving “everything equally to my wife and son” could hand his son an inheritance that puts his benefits at risk, leave the company shares without a plan, and say nothing useful about the cottage, whose validity and effect section 36(1) leaves to Quebec law. His wife could also choose equalization over the will. The law lets Kevin use the same kit as Helen. He is just far more likely to get a result he did not intend.

Common mistakes with do-it-yourself wills

Using a beneficiary as a witness. The will survives, but that person’s gift, or their spouse’s, is void.
Treating a filled-in kit as handwritten. It is not wholly in your handwriting, so it needs two witnesses.
Naming no alternate estate trustee. If your first choice cannot or will not act, the estate becomes harder to administer.
Leaving money outright to a young child. The money may end up paid into court until the child reaches the required age, usually 18.
Forgetting assets that pass outside the will. Joint accounts and named beneficiaries can undo an “equal shares” plan.
Never updating it. Marriage no longer revokes a will in Ontario, so an old will keeps working after big life changes; see does getting married cancel your will in Ontario.

What to do this week

Write a one-page list of what you own, how each item is held, and who you would want to receive it.
Check that list against the risk areas above: a business, a blended family, minor children, property outside Ontario, a beneficiary on ODSP.
If none apply and your wishes are simple, a kit signed with two independent witnesses may be enough.
If one or more apply, write down your questions before speaking with a lawyer.
Decide who your estate trustee and alternate will be, and ask them.
Plan for both powers of attorney at the same time as the will.
If you want a lawyer’s view, a first consultation takes 30 minutes, by video or in person, and you receive a clear quote before any work begins. You can request one here.

Frequently asked questions

Is an online will valid in Ontario?

It can be, once it is printed and signed with two witnesses exactly as section 4 of the SLRA requires. It cannot be signed electronically: section 31(1) of the Electronic Commerce Act, 2000 says that Act does not apply to wills.

Do I need a lawyer to witness my will?

Not for an in-person signing. Any two suitable adults can witness, as long as neither they nor their spouses receive anything under the will. A licensee of the Law Society is required only when the witnessing happens by video.

Does a lawyer have to keep my will?

No. You can keep the original yourself, leave it with the lawyer who prepared it, or deposit it with the Superior Court of Justice. What matters is that your estate trustee can find the original.

How do I find a lawyer for a will in Ontario?

The Law Society of Ontario runs a referral service, which Ontario’s estate planning guidance points to. You can also contact a firm directly; you can read about our lawyers here.

Can I fix a mistake in a kit will myself later?

Changes written on the signed original have no effect unless you sign them and two witnesses sign near them (section 18). A new will, signed properly, is usually the cleaner fix.

Does a lawyer-drafted will avoid probate?

Not by itself. Whether an estate needs probate depends on the assets, not on who drafted the will. Planning can affect what passes through the estate, as our probate page explains.

What happens if my homemade will turns out to be invalid?

For deaths on or after January 1, 2022, your family can ask the court to validate the document under section 21.1 of the SLRA. If that fails, your estate passes under the intestacy rules in Part II of the SLRA.

Sources

This page is general information about Ontario law, not legal advice for your situation. It reflects the law as of October 25, 2026.

Do you need a lawyer to make a will in Ontario?