Dr. Ken Shulman

Total 19 Posts

Dr. Shulman graduated from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto in 1973 and did postgraduate training in Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. He then went on to do specialty training in Geriatric Psychiatry in London, England. Since 1978, he has been based at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, University of Toronto. He is the inaugural recipient of the Richard Lewar Chair in Geriatric Psychiatry at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, University of Toronto. Currently, he is the Chief of the Brain Sciences Program at Sunnybrook. Dr. Shulman has had a longstanding interest in the issue of testamentary capacity and vulnerability to undue influence and has been qualified as an expert witness in Estate matters in Ontario and Alberta. Together with colleagues he has published several papers in the area of testamentary capacity in international journals and is a frequent presenter at legal continuing education conferences on Estates and Trusts. Email: Ken.Shulman@sunnybrook.ca

Videographers Beware

•

Occasionally, those hoping to demonstrate the capacity of a testator will film a video of the testator purporting to show that they were cognitively intact or that the will was a reflection of their independent and capable wishes. Unfortunately, the naïve interviewer makes the mistake of confusing the preservation of social graces for intact cognition and considers passive acquiescence as evidence of independence of mind. Clinicians understand, or should understand, that one….

Videographers Beware Continue Reading »

Capacity Law, Contested wills, Estate Litigation, Family Conflict, Undue influence

The 1870 Test for Testamentary Capacity: time for an update

•

The leading case on testamentary capacity for almost 150 years has been that of Banks v Goodfellow – a judgment written on appeal by Chief Justice Cockburn of the English High Court in 1870.  The four broad criteria that emerged from his judgment have formed the basis of virtually every Will challenge case since that time – this, despite the fact that a few things have changed since 1870.  This….

The 1870 Test for Testamentary Capacity: time for an update Continue Reading »

Capacity Law, Estate Litigation

My First Experience with Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID)

•

After approval of the legislation, it did not take long for one of my patients (identity disguised) to request access to MAID.  I knew that this was a possibility because of previous discussions regarding the eventual outcome of her debilitating and progressive medical condition.  However, it had been couched in terms of a sense of security just to know that the option was available.  In recent months, her condition deteriorated….

My First Experience with Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) Continue Reading »

Capacity Law, Estate Planning

What if I can’t spell ‘WORLD’ backwards?

•

Clinicians and lawyers are regularly exposed to a score on the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) also known as the ‘Folstein test’ after the developer of the most widely used cognitive screening tool in the world. Yet it is one of the most misunderstood and misinterpreted tests in Medicine, not to mention estate matters. The score of the MMSE is often cited as indicative of the presence of dementia and hence….

What if I can’t spell ‘WORLD’ backwards? Continue Reading »

Elder Law, Estate Planning, Home-Right

Carter v Canada: The prudent position of the Federal Government on mental illness

•

The polarized perspectives on Physician Assisted Dying (PAD) mean that no matter where the Federal Government landed on the specific details of the implementation of the Carter v Canada decision, there would be a guaranteed outcry from one or both of the poles – those representing autonomy under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and those concerned with the need to protect the vulnerable. There is certainly merit in the….

Carter v Canada: The prudent position of the Federal Government on mental illness Continue Reading »

Capacity Law

Capacity to execute a Will or POA: “Who and why” may be more important than “what”

•

I write as a clinician directed by case law or statutory law when assessing the capacity of a testator or an individual executing Powers of Attorney. The criteria set out in case law (Banks v Goodfellow) for testamentary capacity have traditionally been weighted toward the notion of “what” the testator knows about their assets and their potential beneficiaries.  To be fair, there is a provision (somewhat vague) about the appreciation….

Capacity to execute a Will or POA: “Who and why” may be more important than “what” Continue Reading »

Capacity Law, Contested wills, Estate Planning, Powers Of Attorney and Guardianship Disputes
Scroll to Top