All About Estates

Month: December 2015

Total 20 Posts

Empathy and Advocacy

Today marks the third anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. It is also the first time that the anniversary falls on a school day.  On this date in 2012, Adam Lanza killed 20 first grade students, 6 educators, and his mother, before turning the gun…

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INCOME DISTRIBUTIONS AND CHARITABLE GIVING AND THE NEW PERSONAL TAX RATES

If you are like most individuals at this time of the year, you probably don’t give too much thought to your taxes and perhaps putting it off until the filing deadline for tax returns approaches being in the spring of each year for most. For those who are beneficiaries of…

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Family Matters

Family matters, but whom does it include? The Tax Court of Canada (“TCC”) and the Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) recently separately considered questions along this line of inquiry.

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The Hidden Patient

Did you see Steve Paiken’s The Agenda and their show on The Hidden Patient? A few reminders: there are 6 million working caregivers in Canada which means that 35% of working Canadians are caregivers. Twenty percent of working caregivers have health issues. Employers have to do a better job of understanding the role of being a caregiver and realize that their most important asset- their employees- need help to be able to focus on their job. Win – Win. We know that family caregivers are stressed. They worry and they also feel guilty.

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Update on End of Life

By now most of  us have heard that the Trudeau government is asking the Supreme Court to grant a six months extension to the deadline imposed last year as part of the Carter decision (see 2015 SCC 5). What this means is still unclear but adds to the speculation that…

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Famous for Multiple Reasons

In the first half of the 20th century Lionel Conacher was perhaps the most famous for his multiple endeavours, but there are some recent candidates.

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Acting as (Unofficial) Attorney for Property

Power of attorney (“POA”) documents are a way of officially granting an agent (the “attorney”) the power to manage your affairs, most commonly your finances or personal care. POAs allow the attorney to step in and handle a wide variety of issues on your behalf, whether you (the “grantor”) anticipated…

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U. S. Estate Tax Closing Letter

Canadian taxpayers are accustomed to receiving a notice of assessment after filing a tax return. In the federal context, a Notice of Assessment, is a statement from the Canada Revenue Agency notifying the taxpayer of among other items the amount of tax they owe, if any, the amount of tax already paid, if any, and tax credits received.

What if that return was a U. S. estate tax return to report an interest in U. S. situs property?

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LEGACY DOUBLE DOUBLE

“I would like to leave my sister $10,000, but I don’t want it to be paid until both of us have died.” Drafting solicitors frequently receive some variation on this instruction when drafting wills for spouses. Although it sounds straightforward enough, there are pitfalls to be avoided.

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Dec 1= Winter is Coming

It is getting to be that time again and holidays are around the corner. Do your parents live in another city than you? For many the holiday period is a time when families are spending extended periods of togetherness, which can be both wonderful and challenging. If this is the…

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