Total 36 Posts
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…..
The Mysteries of Probate, Revealed Continue Reading »
Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Planning, Executors, Practice Management, Probate Tax, Succession Planning
Acting as an estate trustee can be a difficult job. It is often made more difficult when you have to work with a sibling. While the types of disputes co-estate trustees can have with one another are seemingly infinite, one common fight is over valuing an estate asset. Valuing estate assets properly is important – it may impact estate tax, the deceased’s personal taxes, and the sale price of the….
Valuing Estate Assets – A Hierarchy of Evidence Continue Reading »
Canada Revenue Agency, Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Litigation, Executors, Family Conflict, Probate Tax, Property, Real Estate, Tax Issues, Trustee, Trustee DisputesIf structuring an estate plan across different Canadian jurisdictions didn’t raise enough considerations for an estate planner, add a different legal system to the mix, namely, Quebec’s civil law. This post focuses on the estate-planning advantages available to clients who hold assets both in Ontario and Quebec, specifically the advantage of probate planning using multiple wills. Quebec Wills In contrast to Ontario, which has four types of wills under Ontario’s….
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
Today’s blog is being brought to you by guest blogger, Betty Laidlaw, a law clerk in the Private Client Services group of Fasken LLP. When someone asks me what I do for a living and I answer, “I’m a law clerk”, I often get blank stares. When I say “paralegal”, that is somewhat more understandable, but it is not accurate. Even people in the legal profession don’t always know exactly….
What is it you guys do anyway? Continue Reading »
Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Executors, Passing Of Trustees’ and Executors’ Accounts, Probate Tax, WillsI was reading recently that approximately $30-trillion in assets will be shifting from one generation to the next across North America in the next few decades, according to consulting firm Accenture. A couple of years ago, I wrote about gifting cash or assets during one’s lifetime as an alternative method of distributing your wealth and possibly avoid taxes at time of death. Though there is no inheritance tax in Canada….
Transferring Wealth During Your Lifetime Continue Reading »
Business Succession Planning, Estate Planning, Investments, Loans, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Probate Tax, Real Estate, Succession Planning, Tax Issues, Trusts, Uncategorized