Consumer advocates call for POA and executor training
A power of attorney or executor appointment should come with a guidebook. And they soon could, if some financial consumer advocates get their way. Writing for Investment Executive magazine, Mark…
Court intervention required after testator outlives her executor and most beneficiaries
In some ways, outliving your beneficiaries is a good problem to have. It’s usually a sign that you’ve lived a long (and hopefully healthy) life, but it should also be…
Disinherited daughter must pay sister $55k costs for meritless will challenge
Testators should expect some blowback from their disinherited kids when they decide to split their estate unequally between their children. Whatever the state of their recent relationship, the death of…
$80-million estate of Ontario businessman embroiled in litigation
It’s hard to think of a better recipe for an estate fight than a deceased with an $80-million fortune and skepticism about estate planning. According to a Brantford Expositor story,…
Common-law spouse does not have to share deceased partner’s home
Legal advice is a must for testators with complex family dynamics. Second (or third) marriages, stepfamilies and common-law relationships are no longer the novelty they once were in Canada. And…
Dad’s $400k gift to stepdaughter clawed back into estate
When is a gift not a gift? When you can’t prove it’s what the giver intended. Disputed gifts delivered during the lifetime of the deceased are among the most common…
Copy of missing will validated after court hearing
A lost will is usually as good as no will at all. When the original version of a will can not be found after the testator’s death, the courts typically…
Deceased’s widow defeats estranged daughter in battle over investment account
One of the more common reasons people tell me they don’t want a will is that it’s a “waste of money." But a recent ruling delivers a powerful counter-argument, demonstrating…
Intention matters for joint accounts with kids
Sharing property with your children has its pros and cons. On the one hand, there are very good estate planning reasons for owning property jointly with a beneficiary, since it…
Closing the POA gap
It’s time to close the POA gap. That’s the name I give to the persistently lagging uptake levels for powers of attorney compared with wills. Surveys of Canadians consistently find…