This Blog was written by: Alicia Godin, Estate and Trust Consultant, Scotiatrust “A jealous son sues his desirous and spoiled younger brother and his beleaguered and over-his-head uncle about the spoils of the estate of his late mother.” Working in the area of estate planning and estate administration offers a…
Month: January 2019
Total 22 Posts
The past few months have been quite dramatic for estate lawyers; both on the drafting and litigation end. As many of our readers know, Justice Dunphy stirred the pot in the estate world with his decision in Milne Estate (Re). To recap, in the Milne decision, a husband and wife…
Amendments to Canada Business Corporations Act (“CBCA”), will come into force mid-2019 which will require each private CBCA corporation to maintain a register listing the actual individuals (i.e., physical persons with name, address and date of birth and tax jurisdiction) with significant control in fact over the corporation including individuals…
As I understand, “lucid interval” is a legal doctrine that holds that testamentary capacity may exist at a moment in time even though the testator’s general state would be inconsistent with the conclusion that he possessed testamentary capacity.[i] The idea is that an individual who suffers from mental illness or…
I read an article about quite an amusing case recently. An executive went to great lengths to shield his properties from creditors. In “1995” a declaration was executed purporting to establish a trust for the executive’s Muskoka cottage and in “2004” a declaration was executed purporting to establish a trust…
Let’s be honest, you’ve already broken your New Year’s Resolution. But even though it’s January 24th, we haven’t missed the boat. January is a time for new opportunities, so why not target Chinese New Year on February 5th? Look at us! Embracing other cultures and being our best selves! Here…
By the time a matter reaches trial, a client and her lawyer will have spent a significant amount of time together. A bond often develops over the course of the relationship, with the client trusting that her lawyer will put forward her position forcibly and knowledgeably. As a result, an…
Suppose the will of a deceased taxpayer provides that certain assets are to be transferred to a spousal or common law partner trust. Before doing so, and while property of the estate is being administered, certain property might change or be substituted by the Estate. For example, shares might be…
Reposted @allaboutestates.ca January is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month. Like many of you, I think about Alzheimers quite often; not only the (not so) occasional memory lapses but for anyone who lives with dementia- closely impacting their own lives- the devastation it can bring. Do we need a special awareness month to…
Many of my fellow bloggers have blogged about joint tenancies, whether the focus of those blogs was on a case where the facts involved a joint tenancy or was to simply advise of the issues and risks related thereto. (See Brittany Sud’s blog on January 19, 2018, Steven Frye’s blog…