September 2018

Closing the Gap: Using Annuities to Resolve the Wait for an Estate’s Residual Beneficiaries

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Today’s guest blog is from Lea Koiv, BComm, CPA, CMA, CA, CFP, TEP at Lea Koiv and Associates and Alexandra Macqueen, CFP at Pension Acuity. Lea and Alexandra are strategic partners providing advice in areas including longevity planning and the use of annuities in client estate plans, and pension decisions including commutations, transfers, and wind-downs. Many wills provide for a spousal trust with the spouse as the income beneficiary. This….

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Uncategorized

Is it Improper for Counsel to Assist an Expert Witness in the Preparation of the Expert’s Report?

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Expert evidence constitutes an exception to the rule that witnesses may only testify as to facts, not opinions, and that it is the exclusive prerogative of the trier of fact to draw inferences from proven facts. The expert evidence exception operates where specialized knowledge is required to determine the implications of the facts where the trier of fact is not competent to draw the necessary inferences unaided. The Rules of….

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Estate Litigation, Testamentary Capacity

CRA Keeps A-Knockin’ (and Can Come In)

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Estate trustees be warned: you may be held personally liable for failure to pay the estate’s taxes and/or the tax arrears of the deceased. When estate trustees are advised of this fact by their lawyers, pains are taken to soften the blow. CRA tends to be more blunt. Following the death of a taxpayer, CRA may write directly to the estate trustee setting out the amount of arrears owing and….

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Canada Revenue Agency, Estate Administration, Executors, Liability, Tax Issues

PLANNING AND ESTATE PLANNING FOR THE DISPOSITION OF REAL ESTATE

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I am in the middle of a very difficult Canada Revenue Agency audit of a taxpayer’s claim for the principal residence exemption. It now appears the property in question,  built by my client some 25 years ago may not qualify for the full exemption due to the fact that the taxpayer may have held other properties, which he also built, in the intervening periods which may or not have been….

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Canada Revenue Agency, Costs, Cottage, Estate Administration, Estate Planning, Investments, Property, Real Estate, Tax Issues, Uncategorized

September 21 was World Alzheimer’s Awareness Day.

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In my opinion, dementia is our greatest health crisis. It is a disease that is not based on culture, gender, ethnicity, or social economic background although there is some current research that there may be some modifiable factors. Alzheimers is the most common form of dementia and one that impacts more women than men. The Canadian Alzheimer’s Society shares that women represent 72% of all Canadians living with Alzheimer’s disease,….

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Caregiving, Elder Care

Qualifying Costs of Medical Assistance in Dying may be Eligible for the Medical Expense Tax Credit

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I previously blogged about the Supreme Court of Canada decision in Carter v. Canada[1], which ruled that Canadians are entitled to obtain medical assistance to end their lives under appropriate circumstances (See Blog on Medical Assistance in Dying – Where Are We Now?). A question that stems from that ruling is whether the costs for engaging in medical assistance in dying are eligible medical expenses for the purposes of the….

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Tax Issues
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