Home  ›  Ilm Hub  ›  Answers  ›  Does Ontario allow adult children to challen
Ilm Hub

Does Ontario allow adult children to challenge a will?

Only where they were financially dependent. Ontario does not have BC's wills-variation regime for independent adult children.

Draft — pending review. This page has been prepared but has not yet been reviewed by a Canadian estates lawyer or a qualified scholar. Treat it as a starting point for questions, not as advice you should act on.

Only where they were financially dependent. Ontario does not have BC's wills-variation regime for independent adult children.

The Canadian position

Part V of the Succession Law Reform Act allows dependant support claims. Spence v. BMO Trust confirmed broad testamentary freedom for an unambiguous Ontario will.

The Islamic position

Ontario is therefore the province where a faraid distribution sits most securely — a relevant consideration for families deciding where to hold assets.

Across the madhahib

The four Sunni schools are not recorded as differing materially on this point in the sources reviewed. Where your own case turns on it, put it to a scholar of your school.

Before you act on this

General information, not legal or religious advice. Inheritance depends entirely on the exact family circumstances. Confirm the Canadian position with a lawyer in your province and any religious ruling with a qualified scholar.

Citations & sources

Every factual claim on this page traces to one of the references below. Legislation and dollar thresholds change — verify against the primary source before relying on any figure.

Scholarly & institutional references
  1. Research Papers — Cambridge Muslim College
  2. Research — Cambridge Muslim College
  3. Academics — Islamic law and theology curriculum — Zaytuna College
  4. Encyclopaedia of Islam — Brill
Canadian legislation & government
  1. Succession Law Reform Act, RSO 1990, c S.26 — Government of Ontario
  2. Administering estates — Government of Ontario
  3. Spence v. BMO Trust Company, 2016 ONCA 196 — CanLII
  4. Grewal v. Litt, 2019 BCSC 1154 — CanLII
  5. Wills, Estates and Succession Act, SBC 2009, c 13 — BC Laws
  6. Canadian Legal Information Institute — CanLII
Canadian legal commentary
  1. Challenging a will lack of testamentary capacity ontario — Treadstone Law
  2. Express entry dependants children — Treadstone Law
  3. What is particulars in ontario litigation — Treadstone Law
  4. Suspicious circumstances doctrine will challenge ontario — Treadstone Law
  5. What is an uncontested divorce ontario — Treadstone Law
  6. What is a certificate of pending litigation ontario — Treadstone Law
  7. Wills & estates practice — Treadstone Law