Tag: Make a Will Week

Make-a-Will Week in BC

Events

Next week (April 7 to 13) is Make-a-Will Week in British Columbia. The provincial government promotes this week every year to encourage the public to write their will or bring an existing will up-to-date.

Why do I need a will? Why should I make one?

A will is a legal document that leaves instructions about what you want done with everything you own after your death. If you die without a will, your property will be divided according to the law in BC. It could make things more difficult for your loved ones.

I want to make a will. What should I do?

You could start with reading any of the free resources available for British Columbians. Go to the Courthouse Libraries BC website for a complete list of resources and services, prepared for various audiences: http://bit.ly/clbcwills. At the Wills & Personal Planning Resources page, you could also find information about personal planning documents, such as Representation Agreements and Enduring Power of Attorney.

Printable handouts

For a quick overview, this one-pager for everyone (PDF) comes handy. The handout is also available for public librarians & community helpers (PDF), as well as for lawyers & legal professionals (PDF). Feel free to print and distribute these handouts, but please highlight the short URL that directs back to the Wills & Personal Planning Resources page: http://bit.ly/CLBCwills.

What events are going on?

As part of BC Law Week, People’s Law School has made free public legal education classes available for you in various locations in the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island. Many of them are about wills and personal planning. You can see the complete listings here and find one to attend.

Mark your calendar for Saturday, April 13. From 10:00 am to 2:00 pm that day, you can call 604.687.3221 or 1.800.663.1919 and speak with a wills & estates lawyer for FREE for up to 15 minutes. This great service for anyone in BC is made possible by the Canadian Bar Association BC as part of their annual event Dial-A-Lawyer Day. Other areas of law available for the phone call are business, employment, family, immigration, and tort & motor vehicle.

Want to share the Wills & Personal Planning Resources page? Use this short redirect URL: http://bit.ly/CLBCwills

Stay informed:

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Do you have a will?

Events, Get help using Clicklaw, The broader context

Printable PDF handouts with accessible Wills and Personal Planning Resources for all audiences

Wills are essential tools for responsible planning and are applicable to persons considered “mentally capable” and 16 or older in BC.

Completing a will is usually a relief.  If you have been thinking about a will for yourself or if you have family members who have yet to take that step, the next few weeks are an excellent time to start.

April 9-15, 2017 is Make-a-Will Week, and a number of organizations and legal professionals are coming together to donate their time and effort to help people write their will or bring an existing will up to date.

Don’t forget about Personal Planning

A will doesn’t mean you’re totally covered — if you don’t know about Representation Agreements, Enduring Powers of Attorney and other personal planning documents, you’ll want to read more about these important legal planning documents with experts like Nidus Personal Planning Resource Centre and Registry.

What events are going on?

On April 22, 10am-2pm, call 604 687-3221 OR 1-800-663-1919 for a free 15 minute consultation with a lawyer

Make a Will Week is closely followed by Law Week, so there are a lot of events happening in the month of April. We covered a variety in our last post on April Events.

For example, the CBA BC is holding its province-wide Dial-a-Lawyer day on Saturday, April 22, 2017 from 10am – 2pm where anyone can call 604 687-3221 or 1-800-663-1919 for a free 15-minute consultation with a Wills and Estates Lawyer. They also cover other areas of law: Business, Employment, Family, Immigration and Tort & Motor Vehicle.

Nidus is holding online and in-person presentations about Personal Planning — legal documents for health care, personal care, financial and legal matters.

People’s Law School in collaboration with various organizations are holding many Public Legal Education Law Classes across BC on various topics, ranging from Writing a Will and Probating a Will to Strata Law.

I want to learn more about making my will. What do I read? Who do I call?

At the Wills and Personal Planning Resources page on the Courthouse Libraries BC website, there is a comprehensive list of free or nominal fee resources and services for everyone—from lawyers to people who aren’t familiar with the law. The webpage contains the full list of resources, services and events. The PDF handouts (printable, shareable) contain examples of types of help that can be found on the webpage, and contain a short bit.ly link that forwards to the webpage.

If you would like to make a suggestion for a resource, please email us.

Want to share the Wills & Personal Planning Resources page? Use this short redirect URL: http://bit.ly/CLBCwills

Stay informed:

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