The benefits of joint property ownership as an estate and probate planning strategy are well known; property vests to the surviving owner(s) on death thus, bypassing the estate and avoiding probate fees. In the right circumstances, joint ownership works great and facilitates the succession of the property. However, what may…
This blog post was written by Melissa Plunkett, Director, Scotiatrust Over my almost twenty-five-year career in the trust industry, I have seen a lot of clients who have settled trusts for protection – protection of assets and protection of the beneficiary. Over the course of this past year, with all…
An existing tax debt at the time of death can wreak havoc on the administration of an estate and can jeopardize the estate and insurance planning. This is because the Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA“) is not your typical creditor and has statutory powers to seize assets of the estate beyond…
This blog has been written by Rahul Sharma, Partner, at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Toronto The world is changing very fast and conversations that I am having with people today include generous helpings of “T” words other than “tax” and “trust.” I could try to keep count of how many times…
Maddi Thomas, associate, and Donya Ashnaei, articling student, Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP Background I wrote a blog post on Enns v the King, 2023 TCC 28, last year. This case was significant for estate planners, as the ruling extended the Canada Revenue Agency’s (“CRA”) reach under section 160 of the…
When an entrepreneur dies owning shares or an interest in a foreign corporation, the executor is faced with a challenging situation. An estate with ownership or an interest in a foreign corporation raises specific and complex tax rules that leave the executor and family members hoping the deceased has a…
There are several ways to extract funds from a business; salary, dividend, bonus or a shareholder loan. When a shareholder withdraws corporate funds by way of a shareholder loan, it will be recorded in the business financial statements and comes with tax implications to the shareholder. This is because, a…
This article is written by Nicole Ewing, Principal, Wealth Planning Office, TD Wealth Friends, I’ve got to call it straight, this has been a tough year. Mentally taxing, if you will. Perhaps they all are in their own way, but this one was particularly hard. Life was great, don’t get…
Today’s blog was written by Kelsey Buchmayer, associate with the Ottawa office of Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP Registered plans are an important factor to consider in an individual’s estate planning, whether it’s from a tax-planning perspective, bypassing probate and probate fees, or distributing assets in a specific manner. There are…
My husband and I recently went on a trip to Peru to celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary. It was an adventurous 18-day tour, amazing but exhausting. One of my favourite parts was the beginning of our trip when we spent four days at an Amazon jungle lodge. Part of…