Family Conflict

Total 257 Posts

Deleon v DeRanney and the Definition of “child” Under the SLRA

• • 0 Comments

In Deleon v. DeRanney, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice awarded some dependant support to a non-biological child who was part of the deceased’s unconventional family. As blog readers may be aware, the Succession Law Reform Act (SLRA) does not require that a child be the biological offspring of the deceased in order to receive dependant support – under section 57, the definition of “child” includes “a person whom the….

Deleon v DeRanney and the Definition of “child” Under the SLRA Continue Reading »

Courts, Dependant Support, Estate Litigation, Estate Planning, Family Conflict

A Presumptive Peril: The Law of Beneficiary Designations is Now in Flux

• • 10 Comments

Calmusky v. Calmusky, 2020 ONSC 1506, is a 2020 decision of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice that is ruffling some feathers among banks, financial advisors and estate planning lawyers in Ontario. In this case, the court applied the principles surrounding the presumption of resulting trust, established by the Supreme Court of Canada in Pecore v. Pecore, [2007] 1 S.C.R. 795, to two different issues related to a single estate. One….

A Presumptive Peril: The Law of Beneficiary Designations is Now in Flux Continue Reading »

Credibility, Estate Administration, Estate Planning, Family Conflict, Joint Tenancy, Probate Tax, Resulting Trust, Trusts, Wills

Constructive Trust and Proprietary Estoppel – Built With Your Own Hands

• • 0 Comments

Families often fall into patterns and routines; they are comfortable, stable, and predictable. They can also give rise to legal rights over land. The extent and enforceability of those rights will be put to the test following death or divorce. Such was the case in Tomek v Zabukovec, 2020 ONSC 2930. Joseph Sr. (the “Deceased”) and his wife Mary had two sons, Joseph Jr. (the “Husband”) and Edward. In August….

Constructive Trust and Proprietary Estoppel – Built With Your Own Hands Continue Reading »

Contracts, Estate Litigation, Family Conflict, Property, Real Estate, Spouse

Unclaimed Bodies and Setting Things Right

• • 0 Comments

Unhappily, it is not uncommon for family members to be at loggerheads as to who controls the body of a loved one and whether the body should be cremated or buried. I previously blogged on the 2018 case Miller v. Miller, a decision by Justice Myers of the ONSC, which dealt with this issue. In summary, the estate trustee has the authority to make funeral and burial arrangements. Nevertheless, fights….

Unclaimed Bodies and Setting Things Right Continue Reading »

Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Litigation, Estate Planning, Executors, Family Conflict, Funeral Planning

Locating Unknown or Missing Heirs to an Estate

• • 1 Comment

How should an estate trustee proceed when they cannot identify or locate all of the heirs to an estate? In some cases, a challenge arises where a will does not identify the beneficiaries by name, but by class or some other description. For example, a will may leave the residue of the estate to the testator’s “nieces and nephews” without specifically naming them. Where a deceased died without a will,….

Locating Unknown or Missing Heirs to an Estate Continue Reading »

Contested wills, Courts, Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Litigation, Executors, Family Conflict

ON A PAPER NAPKIN, DID YOU SAY?

• • 0 Comments

The Queen’s Bench for Saskatchewan was recently asked (in the case of Gust vs. Langan et al., 2020 SKQB 42) whether a will handwritten on a paper napkin created by the deceased sometime before his death met the requirements of being a valid will under the relevant Act to permit it to be accepted as a valid holograph will.  The Court had to decide whether the will met the test….

ON A PAPER NAPKIN, DID YOU SAY? Continue Reading »

Contested wills, Courts, Estate Administration, Estate Litigation, Family Conflict, Property, Wills
Scroll to Top