In Ingram v. Kulynych Estate, 2024 ONCA 678, the Court of Appeal for Ontario considered the appropriate limitation period where two different limitation periods were applicable and apparently in conflict in relation to a claim against an estate. Background Henry Kulynych died in February 2017. In his Will, Mr. Kulynych…

In Sheffield (Estate) v. Sheffield, 2024 ONSC 3627, the Court considered an executor’s authority to sell real property subject to a life interest. Katherine Markolefas and Bradley Sheffield were brother and sister. Katherine and Bradley were the children Gary and Donna Sheffield. Gary owned a residential property in Picton, Ontario….

In Herold Estate v. Curve Lake First Nation, the Court of Appeal for Ontario varied a costs award to provide that an estate trustee be personally liable for costs. In July 2014, the Estate of William Albin Herald (the “Estate”) commenced an application claiming ownership of certain islands in the…

In order for a Will to be valid, the testator must sign in the document in the presence of two witnesses. During the COVID lockdown, numerous jurisdictions, including Ontario, enacted emergency legislation permitting the virtual or video commissioning of Wills. These measures enabled the testator’s signature on the Will to…

In Estate of Harold Franklin Campbell (Re), 2023 ONSC 4315, the Court considered whether the new, curative provision under s.21.1(1) of the Succession Law Reform Act  (“SLRA”) was available to revive a Will revoked by a subsequent marriage. Facts:  Harold Franklin Campbell died on June 11, 2020. He was survived…

In the Estate of Nordby, 2023 ONSC 821, an executor was committed to prison for contempt of court for breaching a court order to pass accounts. Facts:  Jennifer Lynn Nordby died on January 23, 2013. Her Will appointed her father, Harold Nordby, as estate trustee and named her two children,…

In J.N. v. C.G., 2023 ONCA 77, the Court of Appeal for Ontario considered whether information from the internet was admissible in Court and reliable as expert evidence. Facts:  The appellant father and respondent mother were married for almost seven years before separating. They had three children. The oldest child lived…

This blog was written by Christopher Cook, student-at-law. Medical assistance in dying (“MAiD”) is yet in its infancy in Canada. It was only in 2015 that the Supreme Court of Canada struck down as unconstitutional the Criminal Code’s prohibition on physician-assisted suicide. The following year, the Parliament of Canada amended…