This blog was written by Isabelle Cadotte – Estate and Trust Consultant with Scotia Wealth Management As lawyers, we routinely field questions from testators about how to avoid challenges to their wills, especially where they’ve decided to leave a family member less than what they might have expected. On the…
Month: January 2020
Total 21 Posts
Estate litigation is full of high emotions and recriminations, usually stemming from decades of family history. As a result, it is not unusual for a client to question their family member’s reason for commencing litigation against them: jealousy and revenge for some long ago slight are usual suspects. However, as…
Secret and trusts are essentially trust arrangements made between a testator and a trustee, without written disclosure or agreement of the terms of the arrangement, but where an understanding exists between the parties. Based on precedent in case law, the essential elements of a secret trust are: • An intent…
Statistic Canada last week (January 8, 2020) released some data from the 2018 General Social Survey (GSS)on Caregivers in Canada (Cycle 32). It is based on information obtained from 7664 respondents who provided care to a ‘family member or friend with a long-term health condition, a physical or mental disability…
Registered Education Savings Plans (RESPs) are tax-deferred education savings vehicles designed to assist parents (or other family members and friends) to save towards a beneficiary’s post-secondary education. A contract is entered into between a subscriber (i.e., parents) and a promoter (i.e., bank or trust company), whereby the subscriber contributes funds…
This blog has been written by Robert Boyd, Director, Scotiatrust Real Estate Investment Trusts, or REITs as they are commonly referred to, are companies that own real estate which generate an income. They can be a useful investment vehicle as they are often well diversified and can allow an individual…
Some losses suffered by the estate due to litigation cannot be recovered.
At a recent tax conference, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) shared its view on reporting a post-mortem loss incurred by a trust in the first year following the death of the last life interest beneficiary (the settlor in the case of an alter ego trust, and the last to die…
Welcome to 2020! Truly hard to believe that we are in a new decade. Time seems to have flown by. As I sat down to write this blog, I wanted to start the new year with some good news. I thought I would update readers about the long awaited spousal…
Saskatchewan recently amended its intestacy rules through the enactment of The Intestate Succession Act, 2019 (the “Act”), replacing the former 1996 statute. “Intestacy rules” are the rules that govern the division of a deceased person’s estate if the person dies without a will, or a portion of an estate if…