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Estate Planning

Toronto Estate Law Blog

Provided by Hull & Hull.

Post Frequency: 10.9/day

Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 08:48:24

Proving Undue Influence Between Spouses

Posted on March 12, 2010
The BBC has reported on the successful challenge of a mother's Will by her daughter, Christine Gill, which had left more than £2m to the Royal SPCA. What was remarkable was the fact that the daughter argued that her father unduly influenced her mother, who suffered from an anxiety disorder, into making a Will she did not want to make...

Capacity Litigation - Hull on Estates #201

Posted on March 12, 2010
Listen to: Capacity Litigation - Hull on Estates #201 This week on Hull on Estates, Sharon Davis and Chris Graham discuss some recent capacity litigation cases. If you have any comments, please email us at hull.lawyers@gmail.com or leave us a comment on our blog...

Looney Tunes: A Varmint's Approach to Estate Disputes

Posted on March 11, 2010
There may be some out there who believe that the art of managing estate disputes is best learned by getting one's hands dirty, by spending long hours poring over the finer details of probate law, by pacing the floors of the courtroom, perhaps even by shadowing a senior partner to soak up the nuances of the mediation process… Bah! For those of you looking to fast-track, you need only tune in on Saturday mornings for an abbreviated approach...

Revocation of Wills: White Out of this World

Posted on March 10, 2010
The Arkansas blogosphere is abuzz over the colourful facts of Heirs of F.D. Goza, Jr., et al. v. Estate of William E. Potts, Deceased, a decision of the Arkansas Court of Appeals. Relatives of the testator tried to propound a photocopy of his Last Will, arguing that he lacked testamentary capacity and was under insane delusions when he destroyed the original...

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Planned Giving - Part 3 - Hull on Estates and Succession Planning #197

Posted on March 10, 2010
Listen to: Planned Giving - Part 3 - Hull on Estate and Succession Planning #197 This week on Hull on Estate and Succession Planning, Ian Hull discusses the importance of charitable giving. If you have any comments, please email us at hullandhull@gmail...

Substantial Compliance and Holograph Wills come to Nova Scotia

Posted on March 09, 2010
The requirements of formal validity have, on occasion, bedeviled the Courts. Presented with overwhelming evidence of testamentary intent, the Court's hands may nonetheless be tied by uncompromising legislative requirements. In Nova Scotia, the legislature proclaimed (on August 18, 2008) an amendment finally permitting the making of Holograph Wills...

Securing the Medical Records of a Deceased Doctor

Posted on March 08, 2010
The estate trustee of a deceased doctor has to secure that doctor's medical records. Standing in the shoes of the deceased doctor, the executor of his or her estate assumes the legal obligation that the doctor had to safeguard the privacy of his or her patients...

Finding "Common Ground": So Close to Cy-Pres

Posted on March 05, 2010
Mr. Justice Brown recently considered whether to apply the doctrine of cy-pres in the matter of The Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Company v. Common Ground Women's Centre, CanLII 2010 ONSC 63. (The doctrine of cy-pres is discussed in Megan Connolly's blog, here...

Brittany Murphy's Will

Posted on March 04, 2010
Brittany Murphy, the star of many TV shows and movies (and, as I have just discovered, the voice of Luanne on TV's The King of the Hill) died on December 20, 2009 at the age of 32. It has just been disclosed that she has left her estate to her mother, Sharon Murphy...

Commissioners vs. Notaries

Posted on March 03, 2010
Sometimes confusion arises as to the distinction between commissioners for taking affidavits, and notaries public. In Ontario, affidavits for use in court must be commissioned by a person authorized to administer oaths or affirmations. The Commissioners for Taking Affidavits Act, R...

Please Rob Me: From Obituaries to Tweets

Posted on March 02, 2010
Last week I heard a report on CBC Radio, and read an article in the Globe and Mail about a new website, Please Rob Me, that takes information posted on Twitter from a location-sharing program Foursquare and posts it, showing when people are not home...

To Fight or To Settle?

Posted on March 01, 2010
The Globe and Mail recently featured a new book, Bargaining with the Devil: When to Negotiate, When to Fight, by Robert Mnookin. In reading the article, I was impressed with how relevant the discussion was to estates matters. In the article, Mnookin says that some of the most difficult conflicts to negotiate are those where the adversary is seen as being untrustworthy - an adversary "who's either harmed you in the past or is out to harm you in the future and whom you may even think is evil...

Not So Fast...

Posted on February 26, 2010
The notion of being buried alive has no doubt been the subject of suspense thrillers and horror films past, probably because it generates the reaction movie makers want – fear. Well, this fictional terror almost became a reality for a 45 year-old Colombian woman recently declared dead of a heart attack...

A Family at War

Posted on February 25, 2010
Although it seems that I hear of a new tale of familial strife weekly in this practice, I still find myself surprised and saddened to hear of each new account. One such case takes us to England, where it was recently reported that the daughters of a millionaire farmer are accused by their brothers to have plied their father with whisky and sleeping tablets before making him sign a Will leaving the sisters £600,000...

The Effect of Divorces on Gifts to Spouses in a Will

Posted on February 24, 2010
In Ontario, the law is that a Will is revoked by marriage (for exceptions, see section 16 of the Succession Law Reform Act (SLRA)). If after a testator makes a Will he or she divorces or the marriage is declared a nullity, (a) a gift in a Will of property to one's former spouse; (b) an appointment of one's former spouse as executor or trustee; and (c) the conferring of a general or special power of appointment on one's former spouse, are revoked...

Admission to a Psychiatric Facility under the Ontario Mental Health Act

Posted on February 23, 2010
Yesterday's blog spoke to the issue of an Application for Psychiatric Assessment (Form 1) under the Mental Health Act R.S.O. 1990. To review, upon completion of the psychiatric assessment, the patient must either be released or admitted as an involuntary patient, a voluntary patient, or an informal patient...

Estate Trustee Appointment - Hull on Estates #200

Posted on February 23, 2010
Listen to: Estate Trustee Appointment - Hull on Estates #200 This week on Hull on Estates, Natalia Angelini and Paul Trudelle discuss conflicting applications to apply for an appointment as Estate Trustee without a Will. If you have any comments, please email us at hull...

Planned Giving - Part 2 - Hull on Estates and Succession Planning #196

Posted on February 23, 2010
Listen to: Planned Giving - Part 2 - Hull on Estates and Succession Planning #196 This week on Hull on Estates and Succession Planning, Ian Hull continues his discussion from last week on Planned Giving. If you have any comments, please email us at hullandhull@gmail...

Application by Physician for Psychiatric Assessment under the Ontario Mental Health Act: The Form 1

Posted on February 21, 2010
Under the Ontario Mental Health Act, a Form 1 refers to an Application by Physician for Psychiatric Assessment, or APA. A Form 1 allows a doctor to hold a patient in a hospital or psychiatric facility for up to 72 hours in order to complete a psychiatric assessment...

Coping with the Demands of an Aging Population

Posted on February 19, 2010
Both the British and Canadian Governments have, in recent days, been urged to direct their attention to the impending costs of providing for the long-term care of their aging populations. In a Report released yesterday, parliamentary "budget watchdog" Kevin Page raised a warning of the impending cost to Canada...

When Unfinished Business and Legal Uncertainty Collide

Posted on February 18, 2010
Recently on our website, Bianca La Neve blogged on the uncertainty surrounding the U.S. Death Tax and Jennifer Hartman blogged on Nabokov's unfinished work "Laura" which the author had wanted destroyed but which his executor published anyway...

The Role of the Children's Lawyer in Settlements Involving Minors

Posted on February 17, 2010
I recently read an article composed by The Children's Lawyer, Debra Stephens, named Minor Settlements: How to Ensure Court Approval. I found this article to be particularly helpful as the article speaks to the role of The Children's Lawyer in litigious matters and explains the common issues that arise during settlements involving minors...

Planned Giving - Part 1 - Hull on Estates and Succession Planning #195

Posted on February 17, 2010
Listen to: Planned Giving - Part 1 - Hull on Estates and Succession Planning #195 This week on Hull on Estates and Succession Planning, Ian talks about the new series he and Suzana will be starting on the podcast: planned giving. If you have any comments, please email us at hullandhull@gmail...

Sibling Rivalry - Hull on Estates #199

Posted on February 17, 2010
Listen to: Sibling Rivalry - Hull on Estates #199 This week on Hull on Estates, Sharon Davis and David Smith discuss sibling rivalry. If you have any comments, please email us at hull.lawyers@gmail.com or leave us a comment on our blog. Sharon Davis - Click here for more information on Sharon Davis...

Unworthy to Inherit

Posted on February 16, 2010
As most of us return to our offices from a long weekend, I would like to share with you an interesting case, which I read over the weekend and deals with an Application to declare a family member unworthy to inherit. S.R. (Succession de), 2008 QCCS 4015, is a decision released by the Quebec Superior Court...

What Do You Do With Grandma's Stockpiles of Teacups and Trinkets?

Posted on February 12, 2010
When loved ones pass away, family members and estate trustees are often faced with sorting through and disposing of personal possessions stockpiled over a lifetime. Sometimes, it will be obvious that certain possessions hold monetary value, such as a painting from one of the Group of Seven...

The U.S. Death Tax is Dead! Will it be Resurrected?

Posted on February 11, 2010
The United State's federal estate tax, more commonly known as the 'Death Tax' is a tax applied to the transfer of a person's assets at death. It is defined by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service as 'a tax on your right to transfer property at your death...

Sibling Rivalry and Caring for Elderly Parents

Posted on February 10, 2010
In her new book, They're Your Parents, Too!: How Siblings Can Survive Their Parents' Aging Without Driving Each Other Crazy, journalist Francine Russo writes about a difficult stage of life: the 'twilight transition' when boomer-aged siblings reunite to care for aging parents...

Guardianship Applications - Hull on Estate and Succession Planning #194

Posted on February 10, 2010
Listen to: Guardianship Applications - Hull on Estate and Succession Planning #194 This week on Hull on Estates and Succession Planning, Ian and Suzana talk about taking a non-contentious step toward obtaining a guardianship application. If you have any comments, send us an email at hullandhull@gmail...

Will Interpretation - Hull on Estates #198

Posted on February 10, 2010
Listen to: Will Interpretation - Hull on Estates #198 This week on Hull on Estates, Ian Hull and Suzana Popovic-Montag discuss Will interpretation. If you have any comments, email us at hull.lawyers@gmail.com or leave us a comment on our blog. Ian M...

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