Separation

Total 22 Posts

Valuation of Interests in Discretionary trusts and Family Law

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These days, it is quite common to find intergenerational wealth transfer to consist of property held in a discretionary family trust whose beneficiaries may or may not have been in marital relationships at the time of the time the trusts were created. A siginifcant number of legal and financials issues related to these trusts in family law, including the determination of what is considered “included” and “excluded” family property before….

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Business Succession Planning, Contracts, Courts, Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Planning, Family Conflict, Investments, Property, Real Estate, Resulting Trust, Separation, Small Business, Spouse, Trusts, valuation

Are Domestic Contracts Becoming More Popular?

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When I explain to people whom I’m meeting for the first time that I’m a lawyer and that among my areas of practice I draft domestic contracts, I’m often met with a response to the effect of “You mean, like, a pre-nup?” I can confirm that a “pre-nup” is, in fact, what I mean. In Ontario, they’re called domestic contracts, and they can take one of two forms: marriage contracts,….

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Contracts, Dependant Support, Estate Planning, Family Conflict, Separation, Spouse

Frivolous Notices of Objection Can be Struck Out

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Counsel faced with responding to frivolous objections to an application for a certificate of appointment of estate trustee may wish to consider rule 25.11 of the Rules of Civil Procedure. Rule 25.11 allows the court to strike out (all or part of) a pleading, without leave to amend, on the ground that the pleading is scandalous, frivolous or vexatious. In Dessisa and Wolde v Demisie the Applicants, Dessisa and Wolde,….

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Contested wills, Costs, Courts, Credibility, Estate Administration, Estate Administration and Probate Applications, Estate Litigation, Executors, Family Conflict, Guardianship, Joint Tenancy, Power of Attorney, Powers Of Attorney and Guardianship Disputes, Separation, Testamentary Capacity, Undue influence, Wills

When is a Dividend Not a Dividend?

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In Trower v. the Queen, 2019 TCC 77, the Company was privately held by the taxpayer and her spouse (49% and 51% respectively) until the taxpayer ceased to be shareholder in the Fall of 2016, pursuant to a separation agreement between the spouses. The company prepared and filed a T5 tax slip to document that dividends were paid in 2016 to the taxpayer prior to her ceasing to be a….

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Canada Revenue Agency, Contracts, Estate Administration, Practice Management, Separation, Small Business, Spouse, Tax Issues, Uncategorized

Separation Agreements, Support Obligations, and Summary Judgment

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Separation agreements commonly include a requirement that one of the spouses maintains a life insurance policy in favour of the other in order to “secure” support payments (either child support or spousal support). It is equally as common to find out, on the death of the supposedly insured spouse, that she let the insurance policy lapsed, changed the designated beneficiary, or reduced the amount of the policy. What happens next?….

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Contracts, Dependant Support, Estate Litigation, Family Conflict, Separation, Spouse

A Gift is a Gift

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We often write about the benefits (and some pitfalls) of gifting, before and after death. Personally, when I recommend gifting, I assume that unless there are specific outcomes required to realize on the gift, a gift is exactly that, a gift – something transferred voluntarily without expectation of getting it back because you changed your mind.  A recent court case appears to support this assumption. According to Johnston v. Song, 2018….

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Charitable Giving, Estate Planning, Family Conflict, Investments, Probate Tax, Property, Real Estate, Separation, Spouse, Uncategorized
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