November 2025

A Beneficiary’s Guide to Reviewing Estate Accounts: The Perspective from British Columbia (Part Three)

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Today’s blog is the last in a three-part series that explores estate accounts from the perspective of a beneficiary, and more specifically a beneficiary of an estate in the Province of British Columbia. These blogs were written by Caroline Caron, a paralegal in the Vancouver office of Fasken LLP, to provide practical and helpful tips for beneficiaries who are navigating estate accounts. The first two parts of this series introduced….

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Estate Administration, Executors, Trustee, Trustee Compensation

Introducing Incapacity Literacy and the Canadian Centre for Decision-Making Capacity

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When there is any concern that a client cannot capably make their own decisions about their financial or legal matters, it is important for a planning professional to inform their client that a person typically cannot self-identify whether they are incapable to make decisions. That person will need to rely on others to identify whether they are capable or not, so as to protect their interests from harm. Throughout the….

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Presumption of Resulting Trusts: Lessons from Atkins v Chamberlain for Joint Accounts

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Today’s post was written by Nina Fainman-Adelman, Associate and Ashely Thornton, Articling Student, Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP Resulting trusts is an equity-based tool for reallocating property when legal joint title does not reflect the intentions of a testator who held the property or account jointly with another individual. A resulting trust responds to the absence of donative intent: equity presumes that a transferor did not intend to make a gift….

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Estate Administration, Estate Litigation, Joint Tenancy

A Beneficiary’s Guide to Reviewing Estate Accounts: The Perspective from British Columbia (Part Two)

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Today’s blog is the second in a three-part series that explores estate accounts from the perspective of a beneficiary, and more specifically a beneficiary of an estate in the Province of British Columbia. These blogs were written by Caroline Caron, a paralegal in the Vancouver office of Fasken LLP, to provide practical and helpful tips for beneficiaries who are navigating estate accounts. In the first part of this series, Caroline….

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Estate Administration, Executors, Trustee, Trustee Compensation

Protecting Charitable Interests

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Are will challenges easier when there are charitable beneficiaries?  Moreover, if there are more charities named in the will does that heighten the likelihood of legal contest? This is the kind of “shop talk” that happens when charitable gift planners get together with trust professionals and lawyers.  One lawyer told a cautionary tale of a large estate that was litigated away from a dozen named charities.  The charities lacked the….

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Court Interventions in a Trustee’s Exercise of Discretion

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In the recent decision of Pitt v. Beattie, 2025 ONSC 5654 (CanLII) (“Beattie”), the court considered the rule in Saunders v. Vautier and whether the sole beneficiary of a trust could demand a larger distribution than the trustee was willing to provide. In Beattie, the last will and testament provided that the residue of the estate was to be held in trust until the beneficiary turned 25. At the time….

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