Estate Administration

Total 509 Posts

Thoughts on Digitally-Issued Certificates of Appointment of Estate Trustee

In the blog posted by Maureen Berry on October 9, 2020, my fellow clerks and I wrote about the welcome changes that were introduced that would allow for applications for certificates of appointment of estate trustee (the “Probate Application”) to be filed electronically.  It has now been six months since this change was introduced and I thought I might provide my thoughts on the process. As a reminder, effective October….

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Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Executors, Wills

New Privacy Legislation Aims to Address Digital Assets in Estate Administration

Practitioners and clients alike have come to realize that there can be numerous legal challenges to administering a testator’s digital assets, including, among them, ambiguous or restrictive privacy legislation. For most Canadian provinces,[1] the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (“PIPEDA”) does not appear to grant executors, trustees, or personal representatives any powers or capabilities with respect to the disclosure of a testator’s personal information. However, in November 2020,….

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Contracts, Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Litigation, Estate Planning, In the News, Power of Attorney, Property

Dude, Where’s My Car? – How to Transfer the Ownership of a Deceased Person’s Vehicle to a Beneficiary in Ontario

More often than not, we come across the following question from an Executor: How do I transfer the ownership of the deceased’s vehicle where the deceased specifically named a beneficiary in the Will? This seems like a fairly simple process but as I’ve learned over time, nothing is as simple as it seems. This can be a time consuming and frustrating process for the Executor. Please note that for the….

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Estate Administration, Estate Planning, Executors, Wills

The Mysteries of Probate, Revealed

Of all the questions I am asked about the administration of estates, the ones that come up the most frequently are: “what is probate?”; “how do I know if I need probate?”; and “what’s involved in applying for probate?” Herein – the answers…..

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Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Planning, Executors, Practice Management, Probate Tax, Succession Planning

Professional fees incurred in the context of a litigation with CRA

On occasion, the personal representative of an estate may have to incur costs to either settle or disclose a matter with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). In a translated technical interpretation, the CRA provided some of its own guidance on how to navigate the relevant rule in the Income Tax Act (ITA). The ITA generally permits a deduction in computing a taxpayer’s income for a taxation year for amounts paid….

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Canada Revenue Agency, Costs, Estate Administration, Executors, Tax Issues, Trustee

Big New Rules for Small Estates

The law in Canada is not static – it evolves and changes to meet our society’s needs through incremental changes to the common law (i.e. the application and interpretation of the law through the courts) and through legislative changes. One recent change to Ontario’s laws was made through the Smarter and Stronger Justice Act, 2020 (the “Act”). The purpose of the Act is to make it easier, faster and more….

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Courts, Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Executors, Trustee, Wills
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