This post was written by Alicia Mossington, Estate and Trust Consultant with Scotiatrust. Specialists in estate planning recognize the value and importance of having a well-prepared estate plan. Many of my fellow authors have articulated the importance of a comprehensive will and estate plan. Those involved in estate administration have…
I once lost a seat in business class to an alleged Emotional Support Animal (“ESA”). The dog’s owners arrived for a flight in which they were apparently ready to put their alleged ESA, Woofie Goldberg[i], into her carrier and stow her under the seat in front of their own seats….
I happened to be on my google machine earlier today, doing a quick search of “activation of powers of attorney”. I found a rather upsetting website belonging to a member of the bar suggesting that a power of attorney ought to be activated “if the grantor dies”, and so here…
My dog and I have a habit of visiting our neighbours at least once a week. After Final Jeopardy, maybe on a Tuesday or Wednesday, I ask George if she wants to go visiting, and my little cockapoo loses her little dog mind, races to the door, and charges down…
It is widely known by estate litigation lawyers that the courts are clogged with disputes, often leading to lengthy delays in the obtaining hearing or trial dates. Summary judgment is one way that the courts can decide cases efficiently. To achieve a just result, a lengthy trial with oral testimony…
I may be ghoulish, but I think not. I am quite interested in talking about death and dying. I’m the daughter of a former hospice nurse, a former student of a high school teacher who spent an entire term teaching about death and dying as part of a world religions…
Alicia Mossington, Estate and Trust Consultant Executors have many responsibilities: paying debts; taxes; testamentary expenses; and managing estate assets. Different assets come with different responsibilities and rules and some assets – like rental properties – have unique complexities to manage. It is common for estates to include rental properties especially…
The joy of working with clients with multi-jurisdictional assets and families can be dampened by the frustrations triggered by working with authorities in those jurisdictions for the timely administration of estates. Having proper authentication of key estate administration documents – birth and death certificates, divorce judgments, probate certificates come to…
Our lives were upended a few years ago by the pandemic, and things since then have been anything but typical. From elevated inflation to skyrocketing interest rates, our expectations for the future and our perceptions of what is normal have been challenged. The word “unprecedented” may be overused, but it…
It’s About Time: When to Review Your Will and Estate Plan Living our daily lives, we are not constantly thinking about our wills and our estate plans. There are usually certain events which bring these subjects top of mind. There are certain events or times in our lives that should…