Author: Tracy King

Though the importance of dower rights has perhaps declined, as most married couples own their matrimonial home in joint tenancy, these rights continue to wield power and can have a variety of unintended and long-lasting consequences when the landowning spouse dies. This paper addresses the purpose of dower, the bundle of dower rights, ownership of land and dower, homesteads, consents and releases, life estates and their values, dispensing with consent, and practical problems. It also provides tips for a drafting solicitor.

This paper is part of a collection presented at LESA’s 2025 Refresher: Wills and Estates in Victoria, BC on April 10-12, 2025.