Estate planning is one of those things people put off indefinitely, which is strange because the cost of not having a plan falls entirely on the people you love. When someone dies without a valid will, lawyers call it dying intestate. What that means in practice is court delays that can stretch for months, legal fees that chip away at the estate, and assets distributed based on provincial rules rather than anything you actually wanted.
A will is where you start. It names your executor, the person responsible for carrying out your wishes. It identifies who gets what. If you have young children, it's also where you specify who would look after them. Without a will, a court appoints an administrator, and that process takes time and frequently causes conflict in families that were otherwise close.
Two other documents people often skip are the Power of Attorney for property and the Power of Attorney for personal care. The first authorizes someone to manage your finances if you're incapacitated. The second covers medical decisions. Without either one, your family would need to apply to a court to get that authority, which is an expensive and stressful process to go through at an already difficult time.
Life insurance fits neatly into estate planning because the death benefit doesn't flow through your estate at all. It goes directly to whoever you've named as beneficiary, bypasses probate fees, and typically arrives within days of the claim being filed. For larger estates, it's also used to cover the tax bill that gets triggered at death, so your heirs don't have to sell the family cottage or liquidate investments just to settle with the CRA.
Estate planning isn't only for people with a lot of money. If you own a home, have kids, or have any assets you'd want to go somewhere specific, you need a plan. Revisit it every few years and after any major life change.