Estate Litigation

Total 411 Posts

Finality Matters: Smith v. Bechtel in the Evolving Jurisprudence on Substantial Compliance

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This blog was co-authored by Latoya Brown, Associate and Ciaran Sheahan, Student-at-Law at Fasken LLP Ontario courts have, in recent years, considered a growing number of cases addressing the scope of their curative jurisdiction under s. 21.1 of the Succession Law Reform Act (the “SLRA”), following the amendment empowering them to do so. These decisions continue to refine the doctrine of substantial compliance and to provide clarity on what constitutes….

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Charitable Giving, Contested wills, Estate Administration, Estate Litigation, Estate Planning, Succession Planning, Wills

Recent Notable Cases in Estates and Trusts Litigation, 2026

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I recently spoke at the Estate Planners’ Council of Halton (EPCOH).  Below is a brief summary of recent and notable cases that Jonathon Vander Zee and I prepared for the EPCOH presentation.  It’s always good to keep up to date.  Enjoy! Cassan v. Giroux, 2026 ONSC 330 Moral obligations matter – the Court will strive to balance a person’s legal entitlement to support with the deceased’s testamentary intentions and moral….

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Estate Litigation, Trusts

Clarification from the Québec Court of Appeal on Access to Testamentary Documents and Notarial Professional Secrecy

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This blog has been written by Frédéric Barriault, counsel, at Fasken LLP The decisions in Bigras (Succession de Lefrançois) c. Faille‑Lefrançois (2025 QCCA 481) and Contant c. Rivet (2025 QCCA 831) provide important clarification of Québec law regarding access to testamentary documents and the lifting of the notary’s professional secrecy in the context of challenges to the validity of a will. Both judgments build on prior jurisprudence, particularly Tanzer and….

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Contested wills, Estate Litigation, Testamentary Capacity, Undue influence

Key Findings Relating to the Exercise of Trustee Discretion

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A view over an old stone fence into a cemetary, framed by an abundance of trees in full leaf.

The recent case of Karrow v. Boghosian, 2026 ONSC 2425 (CanLII) is a detailed decision which warrants a thorough review. This blog will focus on the key takeaways from the case, which focussed on the duties of trustees in exercising discretion in administrating a testamentary trust. The applicant estate trustees brought an application to pass their accounts. The respondent Jordan Boghosian (“Jordan”) raised objections to the accounts and maintained that….

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Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Litigation, Executors, Family Conflict, Passing Of Trustees’ and Executors’ Accounts, Trustee, Trustee Disputes, Trusts, Uncategorized

The Regrettable Gift

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An elderly parent may add their adult child on to title of their home for various reasons including avoiding probate but as a recent case demonstrates there are risks in doing so. The Applicant was the 88 year old mother of the Respondent. In 2009, she and her late husband bought a house together (the “Property”). In 2014, the Respondent moved in with them.  At that time, the Applicant was….

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Estate Litigation

A Novel Approach to Locating Missing Heirs

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Much has been written on All About Estates about “missing” elements in an estate administration – missing assets, missing heirs, and even missing estate trustees. In the case of missing heirs, the executors have an obligation to take reasonable steps to locate the beneficiaries of the estate. Executors cannot simply distribute the estate to those beneficiaries who are easy to find, or assume that missing beneficiaries do not exist. While….

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Estate Administration, Estate Litigation, Estate Planning, Executors, Trustee
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