A Canadian contribution to the commonly used cognitive screening instruments is the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), published by Nasreddine et al in 2005. Unlike the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) or the clock-drawing test (CDT), the MoCA is designed to detect more subtle impairments of cognition, known clinically as Mild Cognitive…
Month: August 2014
Total 18 Posts
For some time I have intuitively believed that because individuals are living longer that estate transfer values must be on the decline. I also believe this statement jives with Modigliani’s ‘life-cycle’ theory that essentially suggests that individuals accumulate capital primarily for retirement, not necessarily to create an ‘Estate’. Thomas Piketty,…
In a recent blog post entitled “Things Lawyers Know,” I laughed out loud when I read #13: “Lawyers are word, not number people. If their fee went up 10%, few lawyers would know how much extra they received.” Math often comes into play in an estates litigation practice, particularly in…
Under most circumstances, citizens of the United States must file annual income tax returns regardless of residency. In 2012, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) introduced 2 voluntary compliance programs to allow US citizens to comply with their income tax filing obligations thereby avoiding possible criminal prosecution and penalties: 1. the…
Today’s Blog was written by Katie Ionson, Associate at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP In the right circumstances, charitable remainder trusts (“CRT”s) can be a chance to have your cake and eat it too. CRTs can be testamentary or inter vivos trusts. Generally, the settlor and/or someone close to the settlor…
I have been a practicing social worker for over 30 years. During this time I have tried to not “social work” my family. Not an easy feat especially over the last 10 years since starting Elder Caring and having aging parents. This past weekend I returned to my home town…
Today’s post is written by guest blogger Adam Parachin, Associate Professor of Law at the University of Western Ontario. In a recent decision – McCorkill v. Streed 2014 NBQB 148 – the New Brunswick Court of Queen’s Bench took the highly unusual step of striking an unconditionalresiduary bequest on the…
A recent Canada Revenue Agency technical interpretation sheds light on the treatment of the deceased’s unexercised stock options and tax relief in the event the value of the stock has declined since the date of death. Our tax rules provide that where an employee has died and the employee owned…