Estate Planning

Total 1087 Posts

That Foreign Property Question

Today’s Blog was written by Rahul Sharma, Partner, Fasken LLP, Toronto Many Canadians today have or are thinking of acquiring some form of foreign real estate.  For some, the property was inherited from parents or left behind in the “old country” following a relocation to Canada.  For others, the property is a vacation home or pied-à-terre in another place. A villa in France or a place on the beach in the….

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Estate Planning, Property, Real Estate, Tax Issues, Wills

Equal or Equitable? A Conversation Every Estate Planner Should Have

This blog has been written by Pritika Deepak, Associate at Fasken LLP. One of the most common instructions estate planners hear from clients is: “I want to treat all of my children equally.” While that may sound straightforward, it often warrants a deeper discussion. In estate planning, equal and equitable are not the same thing, and they can produce very different outcomes. A planner who fails to explore this distinction….

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Estate Planning, Wills

The Consequences of “Stealing” an Estate

The Court of Appeal recently released a decision dismissing appeals against conviction of a former Toronto police officer and a former employee of the Public Guardian and Trustee (“PGT”) who fabricated the last will and testament of Heinz Siegfried Sommerfeld to benefit the police officer. In 2023, a police officer, Robert Konashewych, and a PGT employee, Adellene Balgobin, were convicted of defrauding the estate of Mr. Sommerfeld, who was an….

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Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Litigation, Estate Planning, Wills

Co-ownership Agreements: Another Tool in the Planner’s Toolkit

I wrote last summer about the use of cottage trusts as a planning tool. As cottage season is upon us again, I thought I’d write about another useful tool in the planner’s toolkit, particularly where several members of a generation are likely to share ownership of a cottage property: the co-ownership agreement. While it’s important to consider the mechanics of transferring a family property to the next generation, it’s equally….

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Cottage, Estate Planning, Property, Real Estate, Succession Planning, Trusts

Is AI Impacting the Value of Your Business?

binoculars on a wooden table to express the idea of Elder Care Planning Framework

Artificial intelligence (“AI”) is transforming the business landscape at a remarkable pace. While much has been written about the opportunities AI can create, less attention has been given to the ways it can reduce the value of a small or family-owned business when it is poorly implemented (or simply ignored), weakly governed, or not aligned with changing market expectations. Refinancing and Business Value When AI contributes to a decline in….

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Estate Planning, Small Business, valuation

Planning for the Long Game: What Happens When Your Executor Becomes Incapable?

This blog has been written by Karen La Caprara, Counsel, at Fasken LLP When contemplating estate planning, it can be easy to focus on a single moment: death. But estate administration does not occur in a moment. It often unfolds over many months, or years, particularly where there is a continuing trust, significant tax work, or illiquid assets. This raises a question that testators can easily overlook at the planning….

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Estate Administration, Estate Planning, Executors, Wills
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