Adulting 101 – Get Powers of Attorney
Did you just recently buy a house? Have you just recently had or adopted any children? Better yet, are you alive and over the age of 18? If you answered yes to any of these questions, it’s a really good idea to prepare Powers of Attorney. What are Powers of Attorney? There are two main […]
Give a Little, Get a Lot!
Let’s put aside the first misconception about legacy giving and clarify that you do not have to be wealthy to leave a legacy! Legacy giving can be for everyone. According to the Charities Directorate of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) there are more than 85,000 registered charities in Canada. A list of all registered Canadian […]
Resigning as the Attorney for Property and/or Personal Care
In an earlier blog, I wrote about how to resign as estate trustee of a loved one’s estate. In this blog, I will be discussing how to resign as the attorney under a Power of Attorney for Property or Power of Attorney for Personal Care. Acting as an attorney can be equally onerous as acting as […]
The Costs of a Gift of Real Property
When giving the gift of real property, whether it be through a life interest or as an outright gift, it is important to give due consideration to how the expenses and liabilities that go along with the property will be dealt with after death to ensure your gift is carried in the way you intended. […]
November is Make a Will Month – Do You Have Your Estate Plan in Place?
Your Estate Plan Let’s first address the elephant in the room! Dying. You will die, I will die, we all will die. It may not be tomorrow, or next week, or for many years, but the trouble is, we often do not know when the inevitable will hit. Yet, we are reluctant to talk, let […]
Is Paper the Way of the Past? British Columbia Proposes Legislation for Electronic Wills
COVID-19 has brought about various emergency orders permitting virtual witnessing of wills and powers of attorney in Ontario and other provinces. As things start to open up we begin to question if some of the emergency measures are worth retaining or will we revert back to the pre-pandemic ways of executing and witnessing wills and […]
Sorry to be the Bearer of Bad News, but Those Joint Assets May be Subject to Estate Administration Tax
As estates lawyers, we often find ourselves being the bearer of bad news when it comes to advising estate trustees on whether the deceased’s joint assets are subject to estate administration tax (formerly called, probate tax). Ontario has one of the highest estate administration tax rates in the country. Ontario’s estate administration tax is calculated […]
The Family Cottage and Estate Planning
Few issues in estate planning cause a greater gnashing of teeth than trying to deal with the family cottage: cottages can carry with them the best of memories, the strongest of emotional attachments, and the potential for the biggest battles, when it comes to succession planning. Clients often don’t like dealing with their cottages specifically, […]
Capacity and Estate Planning
It’s no secret that Canada has an aging population. The Government of Canada reported that in 2014, over 6 million Canadians were aged 65 or older, representing 15.6 percent of Canada’s population. By 2030 seniors will number over 9.5 million and make up 23 percent of Canada’s population. Additionally, by 2036, the average life expectancy […]
