All About Estates

Month: November 2021

Total 17 Posts

The Sale Must Close

In a Will challenge proceeding, the Court in Lugarich v. Fabris, 2021 ONSC 7294, considered the interlocutory issue of whether to authorize the estate trustee appointed pursuant to the challenged Will to complete the sale of a residential property, or whether an estate trustee during litigation should be appointed to…

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November is Falls Prevention Month

“Which is the deadliest room in the house?”  Of course, falls can occur anywhere and at any time, so the best approach is prevention. Accreditation Canada  requires organizations that provide home care services to incorporate falls prevention as part of their staff training. Generally, safety proofing the home includes identifying…

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TIPS ON BRINGING A PASSING OF ACCOUNTS APPLICATION – PART 5 (FINAL THOUGHTS)

Today’s blog will wrap up my series of blogs related to bringing an application to pass accounts (the “Passing Application”).[1]  We will look at how an Executor/Trustee completes the Passing Application and obtains a judgment on passing of accounts. A Passing Application will either proceed without a court hearing, if…

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Just a “Simple will” Please

This Blog was written by Emily Racine, Estate and Trust Consultant with Scotia Wealth Management  As estate planners, we often hear from our clients that they just want a “simple” will. They tell us that they have a “simple” estate and so don’t need any complicated estate planning. Personally, every…

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Potential Cost of Witnessing a Will

Across Canada, the provinces have built safeguards against undue influence into their law regulating wills: if the witness or the witness’ spouse receives a gift of property under the will, that gift is void. Unfortunately, this rule has the potential to disinherit innocent beneficiaries who unwittingly agree to act as witnesses to the will. This was the situation before the Supreme Court of British Columbia in Wolk v Wolk, 2021 BCSC 1881.

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Digital Assets and RRSP’s, TFSA’s, RESP’s, etc

Do digital assets  e.g. cryptocurrencies (such as bitcoin, ethereum) non-fungible tokens,  qualify as investments in deferred tax vehicles such as Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSP’s), Tax Free Savings Accounts (TFSA’s), Registered Education Savings Plans (RESP’s) and Registered Disability Savings Plan (“RDSP’s). The simple answer is no and maybe. This issue…

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Improvements for LTC, is it the dawn of a new era?

This month there has been several very interesting announcements relating to Long Term Care. On a Federal level, Kamal Khera is the new Minister of Seniors.  Mr. Raymond Cho, continues on as Ontario Minister of Seniors and Accessibility, although I have not heard or seen much from his office. I wonder…

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