The National Gallery of Canada’s Purpose

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[caption id="attachment_5336" align="alignleft" width="300"] New Indigenous and Canadian Galleries at the National Gallery of Canada, Courtesy of The Globe and Mail[/caption] At the recent opening of the new Indigenous and Canadian Art Galleries at the National Gallery of Canada (NGC), Director Marc Mayer made a fascinating throwaway comment. Due to the inclusion of historical objects and artifacts made by Canadian indigenous people NGC had to redraft its legal purposes.  In….

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Estate Donations, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Uncategorized

Who is Your Substitute Decision-Maker?

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Under the Heath Care and Consent Act  (“HCCA”), every person in Ontario has an automatic Substitute Decision-Maker (“SDM”) who can provide or refuse consent to medical treatment if the person becomes incapable of providing consent. However, there is still a great amount of confusion about SDMs and who they are, especially when a person has not appointed an attorney for personal care. Under s. 20 (1) of the HCCA, the….

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Power of Attorney, Powers Of Attorney and Guardianship Disputes

Estate Planning – Can You Just Give Some of it Away?

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A recent article in the press reminded me of a trend in estate planning which appears to be taking more favor in recent times. It is not very complicated, can lead to considerable tax savings and other benefits while you are with the living. I am referring to the gifting of cash or assets during your lifetime. Many people who consult me and other members of my practice are often….

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Charitable Giving, Estate Administration, Estate Donations, Estate Planning, Investments, Probate Tax, Tax Issues, Uncategorized

“Survivor Payment” from a TFSA to a Spouse who was not the Designated Beneficiary

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In Technical Interpretation 2016-0679751E5 the CRA considered whether a survivor payment could be made out of deceased’s TFSA to the deceased’s spouse, in circumstances where the spouse was not the designated beneficiary of the TFSA. In this case, the executor wished to satisfy a legacy to the deceased’s spouse out of the property of the deceased’s TFSA. The estate, and not the spouse, was the beneficiary of the TFSA. A….

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Estate Administration, Tax Issues

Exporting Canadian Art

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  [caption id="attachment_5287" align="aligncenter" width="527"] Lawren Harris, 1926. Sold in November 2016 for $11.2 million.[/caption] Like most countries, Canada has a cultural property regime designed to protect art and objects of cultural significance.  Inspired by UNESCO Convention (1970), cultural property must get clearance from the Canadian Cultural Property Export and Review Board (CCPERB) before it leaves the country.  Outdated elements of this important system are creating challenges for Canadian art….

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Estate Administration, Uncategorized

Sorry, you’re not invited

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A party has a right to be present at all parts of the litigation process, including at examinations for discovery.  However, the court has discretion to exclude co-parties from attending at each other’s examination for discovery where there is a risk of evidence tailoring.  In the recent case of Boodhoo v Persaud, Justice Myers excluded all of the parties from each other’s examinations for discovery. The deceased passed away in….

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