A case recently crossed our desks that I simply had to comment on. The Ontario Court of Appeal in the recent case of Rutman v. Rabinowitz set a very high watermark by awarding $700,000.00 in damages for Internet Defamation. The Defendants’ were found to have mounted a lengthy defamatory internet campaign against the plaintiff. Despite […]
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Valuing an Asset A Financial Planner or Insurance Agent’s book of Business
We have represented on a number of occasions spouses who either are financial planners or are separating from one. Financial planners are undergoing a seismic consolidationshift in their industry. Financial planners overseeing a set of assets of even thirty milliondollars may find themselves as being deemed to be too small to be worth the trouble […]
Read MoreSeeking Retroactive Child Support
We have discussed this issue elsewhere on this website. Of course, the leading case is the 2008 Supreme Court of Canada decision in B.D. vs. G. The court set out four factors: Is there a reasonable excuse for the delay in bringing the application for retroactive support? What was the conduct of the payor parent? […]
Read MoreSupport Vs. Costs
Seeking a Reduction in Support. Be Very Very Careful One of the penalties of losing a court case are not only the legal fees you will have spent but a strong likelihood that the court will order you to pay a substantial portion of the winning side’s fees. This becomes even more complicated in a […]
Read MoreThe Tort of Conspiracy
In very complicated files, it can sometime pay to seek help from the court by bringing in a civil claim, formally titled the tort of conspiracy. A Tort is a civil wrong such as negligence or breach of contract. One would ask the court in their application that various additional persons are jointly and severally […]
Read MoreWeird Will Wonders # 1
You must be very careful in choosing the witnesses to your will. A normal will,(in other words, not a handwritten holographic will which is an entirely different topic,) requires a will to be signed by the person making the will and in front of two witnesses who must also sign their name. However, no beneficiary […]
Read MoreWeird Will Wonders # 2
What happens to your will if after you sign it, you marry? Unless some magic words are used in the will upon a subsequent marriage it goes poof, it disappears, it becomes void, it becomes invalid. The magic words are along the lines “I make this will in contemplation of my marriage to Kim Kardashian…” […]
Read MoreWeird Will Wonders # 3
What happens to your will if after you make your will you get divorced? In those circumstances the will is interpreted as if the person that you divorced had died immediately before you. So, if you name your wife as the executor and the beneficiary of you will and then you divorce her, unless you […]
Read MoreGift Gone Wrong
Elsewhere on our website we have described the 3 essential ingredients for a legal gift. 1. An intention to make the gift 2. An actual acceptance of the gift 3. An actual delivery of the gift In the tragic case of Teixeira, a decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal, we have a gift that […]
Read MoreSeeking a Reduction in Support. Be Very Careful.
We are frequently consulted by clients seeking a reduction in either child or spousal support. They may come armed with the fact that a child is no longer attending school or the other spouse is now living with a new partner and seek a reduction in support. It is not that simple and, one needs […]
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