Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP

Joint Retainers and Estate Planning

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Lawyers in Ontario are regulated by the Law Society of Ontario, and the Rules of Professional Conduct set out the professional and ethical obligations to which lawyers must adhere. One of the duties relates to avoiding conflicts of interest, except in certain circumstances. Rule 3.4-5 of the Law Society of Ontario Rules of Professional Conduct sets out the rule for joint retainers and provides as follows….

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Estate Planning

The Jeffrey Epstein “Plot” Thickens…Last Will and Testament Signed 2 Days Prior to Death!

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Jeffrey Epstein (“Epstein”) signed a will just 2 days before he was found dead in his jail cell, raising new queries about his final days inside the Manhattan Correctional Centre, where he was awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges. This new development adds to what is likely going to be a long battle over the estate of the financier and convicted pedophile. While the criminal charges against….

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Estate Administration, Estate Planning, In the News, Wills

Advantages and Disadvantages of Charitable Remainder Trusts[1]

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A charitable remainder trust is an underutilized philanthropic tool where a charity is given a future monetary benefit, while the donor receives immediate tax relief in respect of the charitable contribution. Typically, a donor irrevocably contributes property to a trust for the lifetime of a beneficiary, with a charity being the residual capital beneficiary upon the death of the lifetime beneficiary. The lifetime beneficiary has the right to the income….

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Charitable Giving, Trusts

Income Splitting Loans and what you should know (and do) prior to April 1, 2018

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Under the Income Tax Act R.S.C., 1985, c. 1 (5th Supp.), there are certain income-splitting arrangements that are available when a loan is made from an individual to his/her lower income spouse/common-law partner and when a loan is made to a discretionary family trust, the beneficiaries of which include minor children. For example, an individual may loan funds to his/her lower income spouse to make an investment.  In order for attribution,….

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Uncategorized

The Senate Strikes Back?

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The latest chapter in the ongoing saga of the federal government’s reforms to the taxation of private companies was released on December 13, 2017. On that date, the Minister of Finance released the draft legislation and explanatory notes for the revised version of the “income sprinkling” or “TOSI” (tax on split income) rules that were first released on July 18, 2017. The release also includes a guidance document that is….

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Tax Issues

Pre-Conception Parentage Agreements

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Over my past several blogs I have looked at the new rules for determining parentage introduced in the All Families Are Equal Act (Parentage and Related Registrations Statute Law Amendment), 2016, S.O. 2016, c. 23 (“Act”), since it is important for estate planners to understand and appreciate the variety of family structures that our clients, and their intended beneficiaries, may have. The final component of the new parentage rules I….

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Estate Planning
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