All About Estates

Category: Capacity Law

Total 133 Posts

Videos and Wills: Helpful or Harmful?

Pictured: A screen grab from the music video for “Only Acting” by Kero Kero Bonito. It’s one of my favourite songs. It’s not quite about video wills, but it does show off some of the challenges of recording oneself. What are Video Wills? Some practitioners have floated the idea of…

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BILL C-62 – Delays the inclusion of mental illness from MAID eligibility

Everyone knows the tragic Shakespeare tale of how Juliet awakens from her “death” to discover that her love Romeo had taken his life, believing that Juliet had really died.  Juliet, in her own state of sorrow, stabs herself with a dagger and is joined forever with her love Romeo. This…

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Capacity Evaluation – the Role of Corroborative Information at CCB Hearings

In my last blog, I described the Court’s expectation for confirming a finding of incapacity: namely, that compelling evidence is required to override the presumption of capacity. Such evidence may include corroborative information. However, the Court has warned assessors to be alive to the presence of improper motives of informants…

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Striking a Balance With Temporary Guardianship Orders

Conflicting opinions about what is in the best interest of an incapable adult is at the core of many guardianship disputes. For example, adult siblings may disagree about the level of care their parent should be receiving or where their parent should live. Although rare, sometimes the conflicting views are…

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Costs in Capacity Litigation

The question of who will bear the costs of a proceeding at the end of the day is often hotly debated, but the matter may be more complex in cases where the litigation concerns the guardianship of, or issues relating to, an incapable individual. The court in Fiacco v. Lombardi…

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Suggested Instructions for Attorneys for Personal Care: Limitations of Authority

It is just as important to know the limitations of a power of attorney for personal care as it is to know your responsibilities.

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The SDA and Parens Patriae Jurisdiction

Power of attorney and guardianship disputes are fairly common in the estate litigation world. Oftentimes, siblings proceed to court as a result of allegations of financial abuse or a failure to look after the health and care of an incapable parent, in accordance with what is required of an attorney…

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“Hypothetical and Premature”: Challenge of Will, POAs, and Trust While Grantor Alive and Capable

A few months ago the Ontario Court of Appeal released its decision in Palichuk v. Palichuk, 2023 ONCA 116 (CanLII) (“Palichuk”) which upheld the decision of the applications judge. The applications judge dismissed a guardianship application and awarded costs against the appellant. The appellant sought guardianship of her mom and…

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The Life and Legacy of Gina Lollobrigida – An Estates Perspective

Today’s blog is written by Jessica J. Butler, Law Clerk at Fasken LLP. Italian cinema legend Gina Lollobrigida passed away at the age of 95 in January 2023.  Known by fans as ‘La Lollo’, she starred in over 60 films which included the likes of Frank Sinatra and Sean Connery….

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Gefen Estate v. Gefen

The Ontario Court of Appeal (“ONCA”) decision in Gefen Estate v. Gefen is an interesting read which provides insight into a variety of topics including mutual wills and mutual will agreements, secret trusts, the doctrine of unconscionable procurement, and more! By way of background, Elias and Henia Gefen were married…

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