COVID-19 Crisis Prompts Changes to Rules for Witnessing Wills

Apr 8, 2020 | Estates, Major Announcements, Powers of Attorney

Good news: Ontario will now allow lawyers to witness Will signing remotely in response to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis.

I am pleased that I will be able to meet with clients using online video platforms.

Up until an emergency order was passed yesterday, Ontario had strict rules pertaining to the witnessing of both Wills and Powers of Attorney (property and personal care). Two witnesses, neither of whom can be a beneficiary or spouse of a beneficiary, must be present in person to see the Will-maker sign the document. The emergency order to allow virtual witnessing will be in effect for the duration of the state of emergency declared by the province on March 17.

The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred many people to want to make sure they have everything in order. Putting a Will in place or updating your Will can offer you peace of mind that your loved ones will be taken care of should something happen to you. The emergency order applies to typed wills. It does not prevent people from making “holograph” wills, which are entirely handwritten and do not require a witness.

Please contact me if you have any questions about this and if I can assist you with your estate planning needs.

It’s here! Our online presence has arrived!

It’s here! Our online presence has arrived!

May 3, 2017 | Estates, Living Will, Major Announcements, Powers of Attorney

We are pleased to reveal our website for Petrook Law.  Feel free to Take a Peek! We have worked hard to create an online presence to meet the needs of our clients.

We encourage you to visit and explore the site to review our legal services focused on Wills and Estates.  Our website is agile, interactive, and is easy to scan, read and navigate, enabling clients to find what they need quickly.

One of our main goals we wanted to achieve when designing the site was to help our clients get to know us and get a feel for who we are as a firm. We are using a responsive design, which means that you’ll see essentially the same design optimized for your smart phone, tablet and desktop.

We hope you will visit the website at https://www.petrooklaw.com and acquaint yourself with our firm. And while you’re there, let us know what you think by clicking here. We’re quite proud of it, but we know there’s still work to do. In the coming months, we hope to continue improving the site so that it best serves how we communicate with you.

We look forward to working with you.