We have already touched elsewhere on the concept of the presumption of resulting trust. There is an old English legal maxim “equity assumes bargains and not gifts”. In essence, no one gets anything for nothing as the starting point for all actions in life. At one point, there was no such presumption attaching to gifts […]
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We have already posted several blog articles on the issue of when is a gift not a gift. This even extends to the concept of beneficiary designations and while we will not repeat those concerns, we recommend those blog articles to our faithful readers. The 3 PARTS OF A GIFT As stated elsewhere, we know […]
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The number one item to consider when purchasing or selling a business is whether the transaction should be structured as an asset or share purchase/sale. Although both accomplish the same task of completing the transaction and transferring ownership in the business, they can have different consequences for both prospective buyers and sellers. An asset sale […]
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Elsewhere in our blog articles, we have discussed the creation of a Henson Trust. What happens if the testator/willmaker never created one? This can happen for various reasons, including where the deceased left no Will or if the disability took place after the Will was prepared. Sometimes, the willmaker fails to reveal to the lawyer […]
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It is not uncommon for the average person to have heard of a Henson Trust, but not to have understood its meaning. A Henson Trust is named after a 1989 case involving the will of Leonard Henson of Guelph. The provisions of that will was challenged and eventually led to an important decision that held […]
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This is an old doctrine, but it resurfaced in the 2019 decision of Geffen v Gaertner. In that decision, two children received greater gifts of wealth from their parents than their two siblings. The disappointed children started a lawsuit to set aside the gifts on the basis of unconscionable procurement. Unlike various presumptions that we […]
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Is printing your name the equivalent of signing a Will for the purpose of creating a valid Will? This blog article must be looked at taking into account the substantial compliance rules that will be in effect in Ontario as of January 1, 2022. Substantial compliance means as long as the court believes that a […]
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We are neither tax lawyers nor accounts, however, it is important that we point out to our clients who are the estate trustees aka executors, that they retain the services of a qualified accountant as quickly as possible. It is not uncommon to have an estate with foreign beneficiaries. Beneficiaries who live in another country […]
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Until now, it has been easy to ignore court decisions that have emanated from British Columbia. British Columbia’s law of substantial compliance was so different than Ontario’s that those cases had no meaning here. However, with the sweeping changes coming as of January 1, 2022, the decisions being made in British Columbia are important for […]
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As we have described elsewhere, a holographic Will is a valid Will if entirely in the handwriting of the testator/willmaker and is signed by them. There may be no other writing or printing on the pages. There was no need for many of the normal formalities of a Will, including the witnessing by two individuals. […]
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