Total 80 Posts
Over 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 »
DisabilityIn 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
Capable adults are free to enter into a contract with one another. Once entered into, the contract is binding on the parties (exceptions apply) and they may ask the court for assistance enforcing the terms of the contract. Different rules apply to contracts entered into by minors (in Ontario, the Age of Majority and Accountability Act defines a “minor” is anyone under the age of 18). Subject to a few….
Capacity to Contract – The Settlement Edition Continue Reading »
Contracts, Disability, Estate LitigationAs most of you know, the Disability Tax Credit is a credit to income tax otherwise payable, available for those with a severe or prolonged impairment. It is meant to provide some relief from the additional costs and expenses incurred associated with the impairment. It is also referred to by many as a gatekeeper credit because it is a cornerstone to such programs such as registered disability plans, the working….
The Application for the Disability Tax Credit to be Reviewed: Hallelujah! Continue Reading »
Canada Revenue Agency, Dependant Support, Disability, Elder Care, Geriatric Care Management, In the News, Tax Issues, Uncategorized
I previously blogged about changes that could be made to the current qualified disability trust (“QDT”) rules to make them more flexible. In that blog I briefly referred to changes to the principal residence exemption that limit the types of personal trusts that can use the exemption, one of which is a QDT. A QDT, like the other eligible trusts under the new principal residence rules, must have a “specified….
The Principal Residence Exemption and Qualified Disability Trusts Continue Reading »
Disability, Trusts
As my fellow bloggers have recently written, changes have been made to the Ontario Disability Support Program (“ODSP”) effective September 1, 2017, three of which are of particular importance for estate planning purposes: The amount a benefits recipient can receive in the form of gifts, trust distributions, and life insurance proceeds (“voluntary payments”) has been increased from $6,000 per year to $10,000 per year; The benefits recipient can receive a….
Further Reform Needed to Support Disability Benefits Recipients Continue Reading »
Disability, Tax Issues