It is imperative to make a will. Too often lawyers come across files where an individual dies without a will (i.e. “intestate”), leaving behind a messy estate to be wrapped up and distributed. People often wonder who inherits an intestate person’s estate. When a person dies intestate in Ontario, the distribution of his or her estate is governed by the intestacy rules set out at Part II of the Succession….
And the Estate Goes to… Continue Reading »
UncategorizedWe have blogged about income splitting arrangements available to individuals who wish to loan funds to his/her lower income spouse or adult child, or in the case of minor children, a discretionary family trust. Such loans would be used to invest in income producing properties such marketable securities, mutual funds, real estate income trusts (to name a few). The income from these properties less the interest paid on the loans….
Income Splitting Loans: What’s the Use? Continue Reading »
Canada Revenue Agency, Estate Planning, Interest, Investments, Property, Spouse, Tax Issues, UncategorizedOver the last few weeks I had the pleasure of attending two hospital events. One was a fundraiser for the new Women’s (College) Hospital and the other was a recognition lunch by Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation; two world class hospitals that we are lucky to have located in Toronto. Both key note speakers were articulate, well recognized experts in their fields and both spoke about advances in cancer research. It….
Cancer 1: Dementia 0 Continue Reading »
DisabilityAs a “millennial” (an imprecise demographic term which describes those born between 1980 and somewhere in the late 1990s), I often hear about the ways in which my generation is doing things differently (often worse) than those generations before us: we live on our smartphones[1], we can’t seem to get out of our parents’ houses and in to our own places[2], and we are delaying getting married and having families….
Estate Planning for Millennials Continue Reading »
UncategorizedThere is a fundraising truism that says you don’t get money unless you ask for it. But as estate planning professional know that’s not always true. A difference between lifetime gifts made directly to charity and estate donations is motivation. Often lifetime gifts are extrinsically motivated; estate donations are more likely to be intrinsically motivated. In other words, most everyday gifts are the result of an external solicitation; estate donations….
Intrinsic v. Extrinsic Giving Continue Reading »
Charitable Giving, Estate Donations, Estate Planning, Philanthropy/Charitable GivingIn 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada held that the ban on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) was unconstitutional (for a summary of the decision, click here). However, MAiD is not available to all persons; to qualify, a person requesting MAiD must have a grievous and irremediable medical condition including an illness, disease or disability. In its seminal decision, Carter v. Canada (Attorney General), 2015 SCC 5, the Supreme Court of….
Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) and Undue Influence Continue Reading »
Capacity Law, Disability, Elder Care, Elder Law, Geriatric Care Management, In the News, Testamentary Capacity, Undue influence