Interpreting Wills: The “Armchair” Approach
May 28, 2024 By Mark Mikulasik Have you ever wondered how a court interprets a will when people disagree about the meaning? THE CASES The principles are described in the Ontario Superior Court decision of Mohapel v. Young. The objective is that: When interpreting a will, the court’s task is to determine the testator’s actual […]
Trustee Compensation and Legal Fees
May 28, 2024 By Nick Melchiorre Trustees , including estate trustees, are entitled to compensation for their efforts. But how much? The lawyers for the trustees (or for the estate) are entitled to payment. But how much? What if the same person acts as trustee and lawyer? How are they compensated? The ultimate decision is […]
Who Gets The Dog?
May 23, 2024 By Brian Babcock Many of us love our pets. But in law, they are possessions like any other personal property. In the case of family breakdown, or the death of a partner or spouse, ownership was the determination of who gets the pet. THE ISSUE Sometimes ownership is not clear or was […]
Rectifying Wills
May 16, 2024 By Brian Babcock Your will is supposed to express what you want done with your property after you die. After all that is why it is called a “will”- because it expresses your will. THE ISSUE But what happens if the formal will for some reason does not accurately express your intentions? […]
Is That Will Valid?
May 9, 2024 By Brian Babcock In order to be valid, a will must be made while the person making it (the “testator”) has mental capacity to make a will. THE ISSUE A recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision nicely collects and summarizes examples of the indications that a court will look at in determining […]
High Conflict Estates Cost A Lot
April 9, 2024 By Jonathon Clark An estate trustee has a right to be indemnified for its proper costs and expenses. An estate trustee may be removed pending the passing of accounts, but they are entitled to have a holdback set aside to cover their costs of passing accounts. The passing of accounts is the […]
Gift or Trust?
April 4, 2024 By Brian Babcock We have written before about resulting trusts, and the case of Pecore v Pecore which says that when you give a gift to an adult child, the presumption in law is that you are transferring only the legal title and that you are still the beneficial owner. THE ISSUE […]
Is That Will Valid?
March 7, 2024 By Mark Mikulasik IS THAT WILL VALID? I am writing this in November, which is “Make A Will Month”, but not just to remind you that any time is a good time to make a will. If you don’t need another reason to do so how about this – without a will, […]
What if you Die Early?
October 6, 2023 By Brian Babcock It’s not something you want to contemplate, let alone discuss, but it does happen. Have you talked about your children’s futures? Who will care for your pets? What about your digital assets? If you don’t have a spouse, children, or pets, what charities do you want to benefit, or […]
Towards Efficient Justice in Estate Disputes?
September 1, 2023 By Jonathon Clark Estate disputes triggered by sibling rivalry continue to clog up Ontario courts. THE CASE So much so that the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld a Superior Court decision where the judge departed from normal requirements that the outcome of a hearing has to be something the parties anticipated or […]