Crisis Managing Canadian Women Often Left Out Of People's Wills

Women are more likely than men to be appointed to positions of trust for tasks such as administering estates and making important decisions on behalf of someone who has become incapacitated, but they’re often not named as a beneficiary in the related will , says a new study by Willful.

Erin Bury, co-founder and chief executive of the Toronto-based estate planning service, said women “are often the planners and holders of medical information” and take on responsibility for “managing finances and keeping the household moving even now in 2026.”

Women are named as the executor in 53 per cent of wills compared to 46 per cent assigned to a man, according to the study that covered more than 85,000 wills and 121,000 incapacity planning documents created by Willful customers over a two-year period.

Women are also more likely to be entrusted to make medical decisions on behalf of a grantor who becomes incapacitated, with 55 per cent of documents assigning women with power of attorney compared to 45 per cent to men. More than 80 per cent of enduring medical powers of attorney generated by men appoint a woman to fulfil this function.

Similarly, 53 per cent of those named to have powers of attorney to make financial decisions in case the grantor becomes incapacitated were women.

But the study also said 34 per cent of women named to make medical decisions are not listed as beneficiaries in a related will and one-third of women named to manage the finances for someone who is incapacitated are not the primary recipients of their assets.

Another study released last week by digital insurance platform PolicyMe about term life insurance designations said “financial decisions may be influenced by family roles and responsibilities.”

The study said 83 per cent of men name a partner as their beneficiary while women are nearly three times more likely to include children as a beneficiary.

Bury said that although women are more often appointed to positions of trust during estate planning, the burden of taking on the additional responsibility as executor or power of attorney can be taxing.

Legislation  prescribes an amount for executors to be compensated depending on the complexity of the estate, but Bury said this sum does not always match the effort involved. There is also no legal requirement to pay those assigned to make medical or financial decisions on behalf of a grantor.

Bury said the first order of business when assigning trusted agents to these roles is to get “will and power of attorney documents completed and make sure loved ones know where to find them.”

She said people should have a conversation with prospective appointees ahead of time to ensure they agree to take on the responsibility and understand what may be involved.

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Bury also recommended “leaving breadcrumbs of information,” such as a comprehensive list of all assets and liabilities, to make sure “you’ve documented as much as you can outside of purely the legal choices” the appointee will need to manage.

Steps such as these are “really the best thing you can do to significantly reduce the burden” on loved ones assigned to take on these responsibilities, she said.