Wills, powers of attorney and health care directives in New Brunswick

How to make a valid will, an enduring power of attorney and a personal or health care directive in New Brunswick: signing and witnessing rules and who can help, from the official pages.

The three documents and how to make them

Will: you must be mentally competent when you make it (later loss of capacity does not invalidate it); a lawyer is not legally required. Enduring powers of attorney fall under the Enduring Powers of Attorney Act (2019) and can include health care decision instructions when an attorney for personal care is named. A health care directive must be in writing; the earlier 2016 Act (signing and dating, with a witness aged 19 or older) was repealed in 2020, so confirm the current witnessing rules before signing. Signing formalities for a will were not on the pages we read.

Official page ↗

A will, a power of attorney for property and a document naming someone for personal or health decisions are three different tools: a power of attorney ends at death and cannot make a will, and a will does nothing while you are alive. Formalities are strict (a missed witness rule can void a document) and some sources below are old or incomplete: for a large or complex situation, see a lawyer or a public legal information service. Rules, fees and programs change and were read on 2026-11-14: confirm with the official source. General information, not legal advice. Quebec follows its own rules: see atlasquebec.ca.

Wills, powers of attorney and health care directives in New Brunswick

The three documents and how to make them

Guides for this province