The recent case of Lepp v. The Municipality of York, 2022 ONSC 6978 (CanLII) (“Lepp”) is now considered to be a form of required reading for litigants and their counsel. While the facts of the case are not particularly unique, the court’s comments on lawyers’ compliance with the Notice to…
Generally speaking, the beneficiary of an estate has the right to compel an estate trustee to commence an application to pass the estate accounts, which process is to be carried out in accordance with Rules 74.16-75.18 of the Ontario Rules of Civil Procedure. As with any litigation, the question of…
A Registered Education Savings Plan (“RESP”) is a cost-effective way of saving money for a child’s future post-secondary education. The concept of the RESP raises the question of who actually owns the funds therein. Is it the parent who contributes to the RESP (the “subscriber”) or the child for whom…
he recent case of Re Assaly deals with a unique intersection between estates and bankruptcy law and squarely addresses the law of assent. In this case, the estate trustee paid funds in trust to counsel for a bankrupt beneficiary and adult child of the deceased (the “Bankrupt”), on the condition…
As many well know, issues relating to testamentary capacity are often at the forefront of estate litigation cases and in particular, will challenges. Drafting solicitors may opt to obtain a contemporaneous capacity assessment before their clients execute a last will and testament; this may be the case where the testator…
Verifying the capacity of a testator prior to him or her executing a will is essential, and the test for testamentary capacity is well known to drafting solicitors and estate litigators. In particular, Banks v. Goodfellow provides that a person executing a will: (1) shall understand the nature of the…
Estate litigation cases often impact upon persons who are incapable. In particular, an individual may be incapable of, among other things, managing their property or personal care, of making a will (testamentary capacity) and of retaining and/or instructing counsel. The recent case of Guardian Law Group v. LS, 2021 (“Guardian”)…
Missing a limitation period can be highly detrimental to any case. But, what happens when the party simply does not know he or she has a claim, as a result of the conduct of another? This issue, among others, was addressed in the recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision, Beaudoin…
The recent case of Donovan v. MacKenzie, 2021 ONSC 1865 (CanLII) demonstrates the wide and sometimes unpredictable nature of a judge’s discretion when it comes to costs. In this guardianship dispute, the applicant sister (“Jacqueline”) and the respondent brother (“Kieran”) were embroiled in litigation relating to their father, John Kenneth…
While estate lawyers are often presented with files that impact upon the rights of an incapable person, it is important to understand when, why and how the Public Guardian and Trustee (the “PGT”) becomes involved with such disputes. As noted on its website, and in general, the PGT acts as…
