Wills and Estates – Estate Administration Tax Estates Administration Act Probate Fees- New Regulations as of January 1st, 2015 On January 1st, 2015, the Provincial Government activated new regulations dealing with the collection of the estate administration tax, also known by its common name as “Probate Fees”. This is roughly the equivalent of the 1.5% […]
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Parent’s Obligation to Pay Support for Children over the Age of 18
The Child Support Guidelines stops being an automatic formula for calculating child support once a child exceeds the age of 18. The obligation to pay support for an adult child can be found in both the Divorce Act and the Family Law Act, but generally requires a child to be attending school on a full […]
Read MoreCan a Parent Relocate with a Child on a Temporary Basis?
An interesting, recent case was brought before the Ontario Court of Justice on the issue of relocation on a temporary basis. In Boudreault v. Charles, 2014 CarswellOnt 7523 (Ont. C.J.), the mother moves to relocate to Montreal with her 3 year old child by way of an interim motion. It is not without doubt that […]
Read MoreCAN YOU FORCE THE PRODUCTION OF THE NOTES OF THE MARRIAGE COUNSELOR OR THERAPIST
The answer lies within Rule 20(5) of the Ontario Family Law Rules. It gives the court the ability to order the production of privileged documents, even if there is no consent. In the recent decision of Justice Henderson of the Ontario Superior Court in the case of Raso vs. Di Egidio, he weighed carefully whether […]
Read MoreWHAT DO I DO WHEN MY EX-SPOUSE WILL NOT OBEY THE COURT ORDER THAT I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO OBTAIN
The courts are generally very unhappy when its orders are being ignored. However, in the face of an intransigent spouse, it requires a persistent and a skilled hand to force a difficult party to reach a judicially imposed finish line. The court has many tools, not all of them completely effective in motivating a reluctant […]
Read MoreTHE HORRORS OF PARENTAL ALIENATION AND THE SEVERELY LIMITED ABILITY OF THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM TO EFFECT ANY CHANGE
The writer believes that litigious custodial disputes or access fights between separating parents is almost always a function of at least one of the parents having their own psychological issues. When both parents are mature, they should be able to place the children’s interests first and recognize that they both have to play important roles […]
Read MoreDOUBLE DIPPING/DOUBLE DIPPING DOES NOT MEAN PUTTING BOTH OF YOUR FEET INTO COLD WATER
Double dipping is a reference to a future revenue source being shared more than once with your former spouse. The prime example of that is a future pension which is treated as property at the time of separation and is equalized as part of the property settlement. Later once the pension is actually being received, […]
Read MoreCAREFUL WHAT YOU AGREE TO IF YOU ARE TOO GENEROUS, YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO GET OUT OF THAT OBLIGATION
The Ontario Court of Appeal recently in the decision of Stevenson vs. Smit, upheld an agreement in which the husband had signed and in which he undertook to pay 50% of all of the children’s lifestyle expenses, such as camp and private school despite the fact that he had minimal income and was just in […]
Read MoreCAN MY CHILDREN SPEAK TO THE JUDGE
30 years ago, it was not uncommon for a Judge to ask to speak to the children directly alone in his office. We are of course speaking in the context of an access or custodial fight. This went out of favour and was replaced with the children having either independent lawyers representing them (rare and […]
Read MoreVACATION HOME/COTTAGES/RURAL & COUNTRY PROPERTIES
As senior lawyer practicing in residential real estate since 1971, Elliott Dale has vast experience in purchases and sales but vacation/rural property purchases and sales pose important issues that clients are advised to consider and these are as follows: Country Properties contain septic systems that must be approved by the local health department and there […]
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