All About Estates

Month: May 2017

Total 22 Posts

Principal residence and the change in use

It is not unusual for find the value of a deceased’s home makes up a significant part of their net worth and estate value on death. Often there is an automatic reliance on the principal residence exemption to tax exempt the gain on the deemed sale triggered on death.  What…

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Going Gently Into The Good Night

Last week was Canada’s National Hospice Palliative Care Week. So what is palliative care? Since its inception in Canada in the 1970’s, things have changed quite a bit. Only a few years ago, the term palliative care and the public’s general understanding, was that it meant the end was imminent…

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The Intersection between Family Law and Estates Law

The Family Law Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. F.3 provides that when a spouse dies and the surviving spouse’s net family property[1] is less than the net family property of the deceased spouse, the surviving spouse may elect to take one-half of the difference between the net family property of the…

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Hidden treasure leads to hidden problems

This Blog was written by: Robert Boyd We have all read articles detailing how people have stash millions of dollars under their mattress or, executors discover vast quantities of gold discovered at the home of a recently deceased individual. From an estate planning perspective, this may come as a huge…

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Court of Appeal Limits Dependant Support Claw Back

The family law bar must be breathing a sigh of relief after reading the Court of Appeal’s decision in Dagg v. Cameron Estate, 2017 ONCA 366. Both the application judge and the Divisional Court (discussed on this blog, respectively, here and here) held that a life insurance policy taken out…

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DEATH BENEFITS: CAN THEY BE APPLIED TO THE INCORPORATED OWNER-OPERATOR?

A death benefit is an amount received after a person’s death for their employment service. In general, any amount up to $10,000 received is not subject to tax, pursuant to regulations contained in the Income Act (“ITA”). What if the deceased was the sole shareholder of a corporation and received…

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The Latest Census Data: 2016

I am not a big fan of statistics but these figures are worth noting. Today there are more seniors over age 65 than children under age 14. Not only are we living longer but adults over 100 years of age are the fastest growing age group. Today’s life expectancy is…

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Government Addresses an Unintended Consequence of the All Families Are Equal Act

As I noted in my last blog, the All Families Are Equal Act (Parentage and Related Registrations Statute Law Amendment), 2016, S.O. 2016, c. 23 (the “Act”), introduced new rules for determining parentage in Ontario, primarily through substantial amendments to the Children’s Law Reform Act (“CLRA”) and the Vital Statistics…

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Promises, Promises…or is that Expectations, Expectations?

This Blog was written by: Gosha Sekhon, LLB A not uncommon occurrence these days finds single adult children residing with an elderly, surviving parent. The parent, more often than not, requires some assistance with their health care, household tasks and the management of their financial affairs. Usually the co-habiting child…

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Friends Helping Friends – Then Forgetting About It

When asking a friend for a financial favour, people often fail to document their actions and decisions as thoroughly as they should – the trust people have in their friends frequently translates into a belief that they do not need to pay attention. Regardless of whether the trust was deserved,…

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