18 June 2018 TAGS: Case Law How long do surviving spouses have to choose between the FLA and SLRA regimes? In Aquilina v Aquilina (2018 ONSC 3607), S.F. Dunphy J. explains when it is appropriate to extend the statutory deadline by which a surviving spouse must elect between equalization under the Family Law Act vs the Succession Law Reform Act.
29 May 2018 TAGS: Estates Partnership Announcement NoticeConnect is thrilled to announce our partnership with Do Process Software to integrate NoticeConnect with their award-winning program, Estate-a-Base®.
23 May 2018 TAGS: Estates Four Ways to Find out if the Deceased had a Will When it comes to administering an estate, it makes a big difference if someone dies with a will or without a will. But how do you actually know if the deceased had a will? And if you find one, how do you know it's the most recent?
15 May 2018 TAGS: Case Law Case Brief: Koster v. Koster, 2018 ONSC 2321 George Koster died in 2014 at the age of 94. George's nieces and nephews brought an application challenging the validity of George's will on the grounds that George's mistress-turned-wife, Elizabeth, had unduly influence George.
14 May 2018 TAGS: Estates Which estate trustees should advertise for creditors? Every estate trustee should advertise for creditors on NoticeConnect to protect themselves from liability. If an estate trustee fails to advertise for creditors, they can be held liable for the full amount of the deceased's outstanding debts.
11 May 2018 TAGS: Company Updates We're at the CCLA East Region Solicitors Conference NoticeConnect is at the County of Carleton Law Association's 24th East Region Solicitors Conference, as a sponsor and as the subject of one of this year's presentations.
2 May 2018 TAGS: Executors What happens if someone doesn't want to be an estate trustee? Many people consider it an honour to be the estate trustee for a friend or family member - a privilege reserved for a special, trusted person. But being an estate trustee isn't easy. It's a massive time-consuming responsibility that should not be taken on lightly.
1 May 2018 TAGS: Estates Key Considerations When Administering Insolvent Estates Estate trustees have an ongoing fiduciary obligation to pay all estate debts in full, which means that trustees handling insolvent or bankrupt estates must be extra cautious when administering the estate.
30 April 2018 TAGS: Collections What are estate notices to creditors and how do they help with collections? Estate notices to creditors are advertisements that alert the public about an estate being administered. The idea is that when someone dies, the lawyer or estate trustee handling their affairs needs to pay the deceased's debts before they can distribute the estate.
27 April 2018 TAGS: Estates Estate law horror stories: the unruly trustee Many testators provide clear direction on the administration of their assets and appoint trusted and responsible friends or family members as their estate trustees. But there are many instances where these individuals ignore their fiduciary duties to the testator’s estate, with disastrous results.
25 April 2018 TAGS: Estates Three situations where an estate trustee should retain a lawyer It's always a good idea for an estate trustee to retain a lawyer. Estates and trust litigation is a complex area of law, and making mistakes can mean personal liability.
23 April 2018 TAGS: Estates Five Things Estate Trustees Should Do Right Away The estate trustee is the person who is primarily responsible for the administration of the estate. They have a fiduciary duty to hold the estate in trust for the beneficiaries unless a contrary intention is expressly provided in the will.
20 April 2018 TAGS: Company Updates "Estate Law 2.0" Event Recap Thank you to everyone who came out last night to Estate Law 2.0, our joint CPD event with Lexis Nexis Canada.
19 April 2018 TAGS: Estates Why should an estate trustee advertise for creditors? If you’re an estate trustee then you should advertise for creditors to protect yourself from personal liability.
18 April 2018 TAGS: Estates Is someone looking for a will in your vault? If you draft wills for clients, you need to know if someone is looking for one of the wills stored in your vault.
4 April 2018 TAGS: Estates Case Brief: Fica v Dmytrshyn Nadia Dmytryshyn had two sons, Taras and Bryan, and a brother Ned. Taras and Ned had power of attorney over Nadia's property in the six months before her death and were then her Estate Trustees.
5 February 2018 TAGS: Estates The Executor's Year This one-year period starts after the estate trustee obtains a “Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee” from Superior Court, which formally names them as the estate trustee for the estate in question.
15 January 2018 TAGS: Estates The Importance of Advertising for Creditors Today I am a guest author on accountant and tax expert Mark Goodfield's blog. The post is about the importance of advertising for creditors and I highly recommend that you check it out
16 November 2017 TAGS: Estates Four Common Mistakes Made by Estate Trustees Administering an estate is no easy feat. Depending on the size and complexity of the estate, the duties and responsibilities of the estate trustee will vary.
7 July 2017 TAGS: Case Law Court Confirms NoticeConnect Satisfies Trustee Act This morning, Justice Conway of the Ontario Superior Court granted an order confirming that a notice to creditors published on NoticeConnect.com had satisfied the estate trustee’s duty to advertise for creditors