All About Estates

Month: February 2022

Total 15 Posts

(Financial) Cost of Providing (Unpaid) Care

After enjoying Family Day and acknowledging the importance of family, I wanted to share with you some of the latest statistics on the “Value of Family Caregiving in Canada” published February 2022.  Recognition goes to the University of Alberta Research on Aging, Policies and Practice (RAPP) and is based on…

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Happy Executor, Happy Administration

Today’s blog was written by Courtney Lanthier, Law Clerk at Fasken LLP The death of a loved one is never easy to handle, but add on the additional responsibility of acting as an executor and you almost don’t have time to grieve the loss. One of the questions we should…

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The Virtual Mediator: Fact or Fantasy?

This post was written by Diana Leopardi   It’s March 15, 2050, Eric Smith dictates an email reply to an asynchronous based mediation regarding an estate settlement issue. He then voice activates his favorite Spotify playlist and prepares to video chat his sister who lives across the country. In a…

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Alcohol and Drug Use Alone Do Not Negate Testamentary Capacity

In a previous post, I blogged about the case of McGrath v. Joy, where the Court held that a handwritten suicide note was invalid as the deceased lacked testamentary capacity when he wrote it due to drug and alcohol consumption. The application judge’s decision was recently overturned by Court of…

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Goodbye My Furry Friend

  This blog has been written by Sandra Arsenault, Law Clerk at Fasken LLP With more people working from home and less activities available for children, it is no surprise that there has been a COVID pet boom as many families have added a new member to their household during…

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Better Life Insurance Donations

Recently I received an inquiry from a life insurance advisor about a client who wished to establish a policy and donate it to two charities.  My colleague wanted to know if this was possible.  In my experience it is possible, but not the best way to do it. Donation Structures…

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Love After Loss- is it possible?

Happy Monday and happy Valentine’s Day.  I truly am one of the lucky ones and I want to say thank you to my husband of  38 years. However  we live our lives, having a loving relationship is so important. As we are living longer, I am also well aware that…

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“To give or not to Give?” is only the first part of the question – as important is “How”?

Charitable giving is often an important goal of a client’s planning.  As the title of this blog suggests, there are many ways to achieve this objective. What follows is a general overview of on of the options available for charitable giving- namely the establishment of a private foundation- and addresses…

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I HAVE THE POWER (OF ATTORNEY FOR PROPERTY)

This Blog was written by: Tony Cariati, Estate and Trust Consultant, Scotia Wealth Management In the past few years, the realities brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic have highlighted the importance of having a Continuing Power of Attorney for Property; someone can manage your financial affairs in the event you…

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Zoom Is Here To Stay: Virtual Discoveries As The New Normal

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, I blogged about Justice Myers’ decision in Arconti v. Smith where his Honour decided that an examination should proceed virtually.  As his Honour pithily noted, we no longer record evidence with a quill and ink; technology changes and our legal practices must…

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